MNS unveils new party flag
BJP divided over allying with MNS
In an attempt to facelift the image of the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS), party chief Raj Thackeray, on Thursday, unveiled its new flag and introduced a new leader in the name of his son, Amit. The date coincided with the birth anniversary of Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray.
The party, which maintained low profile following the Maharashtra assembly polls, hosted a grand conclave at the Nesco grounds, Goregaon. Party workers from every nook and corner of the state showed up at the venue.
The new saffron coloured flag has a seal of the seventeenth century warrior king Chatrapati
Shivaji Maharaj 'Raj Mudra' at the centre.
The flag was unveiled with Hindutva icon Veer Savarkar's picture in the background, clearly indicating MNS' alignment towards pro-Hindutva ideology.
The new flag was unveiled and hoisted by the hands of MNS supremo Raj Thackeray alongside his son Amit, wife Sharmila and mother Kunda.
Following the flag hoisting ceremony, Raj inducted his son, Amit to the party cabinet, clearly drawing parallel with the Sena having introduced Thackeray scion Aaditya into mainstream politics ahead of the assembly polls.
The twenty-seven-year old is two years younger to his cousin Aaditya. Also, Amit never had a stint on mainstream politics; however, he showed up frequently on
Raj's rallies.
Amit's brief thanksgiving speech was applauded enthusiastically by his parents, grandmother and wife, Mitali.
"This is for the first time I am standing on a public platform. I am thankful to Raj Thackeray and the party workers for having their trust on me," said a gleeful Amit.
However Amit's role in the party cabinet is not stated, but a senior MNS official informed Amit will be given the charge of the student and youth wing of MNS. While Sena's Hindutva ideology is seen to be at the odds with its coalition formed with the Congress and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), the MNS's alignment towards Hindutva can be an attempt to woo the disgruntled Shiv Sainiks.
"The idea of this flag was in my mind when I first thought of forming my own party back in 2006," said Raj at the conclave, who also mentioned the saffron colour is in his DNA, as he was mentored by Bal Thackeray and aspired to transform Maharashtra into a Shiv rajya.
Earlier, the MNS flag comprised of stripes of saffron, green and blue, which represented the Hindus, Muslims and the Dalits, interspersed with white. He also maintained, MNS won't be using this flag for election campaigns and as a voting symbol, claiming the new flag has the emblem of Shivaji Maharaj, which he doesn't intend to use for political gains.
MUMBAI: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which lost power to the Shiv Sena-led Maha Vikas Aghadi in Maharashtra, is divided over extending support to the Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS). Differences surfaced after the MNS unveiled its new flag, which is saffron and has the Rajmudra (royal seal of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj) at its centre. The colour of the flag changed from saffron, blue and green, to simply saffron. Former finance minister Sudhir Mungantiwar said, the BJP was in favour of allying with likeminded parties. ''The Shiv Sena was allied with the BJP for more than two-and-a-half decades because of the shared ideology of Hindutva. But the Shiv Sena broke the alliance after it decided to form the government with the Congress,'' he noted. However, former revenue minister Eknath Khadse ruled out the possibility of the MNS striking an alliance with the BJP. ''The MNS is a separate party, with its own leader and style of functioning. I don't see the possibility of any tie-up between the BJP and the MNS,'' he noted.
Khadse said even though Hindutva would be the common thread between the two parties, the BJP has a national presence and does not have a parochial stand.
On the other hand, BJP spokesman Ganesh Hake alleged that the Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar was the brains behind the MNS's unveiling of a saffron flag. ''It is a conspiracy, to divide the Hindu vote. However, this will not succeed in Maharashtra,'' he opined. However, NCP state chief and irrigation minister Jayant Patil strongly refuted Hake's allegation. ''Is BJP so scared of NCP chief Sharad Pawar? Former chief minister Devendra Fadnavis had recently met MNS chief Raj Thackeray. So it is improper to level charges against Pawar,'' he said.
The idea of this flag was in my mind when I first thought of forming my own party back in 2006.
RAJ THACKERAY