Memorial to be next Sena flashpoint?
MANY IN THE SHINDE FACTION DO NOT WANT UDDHAV AND AADITYA TO BE IN CHARGE OF THE MEMORIAL
As the workers of Shiv Sena (UBT) “purified” the memorial of Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray at Shivaji Park after Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and MLAS of Shinde faction visited it to pay tribute to Thackeray on the eve of his tenth death anniversary on November 17, there was a demand from the ruling side that the government should take over the grand memorial of Thackeray which is being built a few metres away, at the Mayor’s bungalow.
“The memorial does not belong to one family but the entire state. The state government should take it over,” said BJP legislator Prasad Lad, considered a close aide of Fadnavis. “The land belongs to the government. The money to build it is being given by the government. It should not become the property of any family. I am writing to the CM demanding that the trust managing the memorial should be taken over by the government. One or two (Thackeray) family members can be nominated on the trust,” said Lad.
The memorial was the brainchild of Uddhav Thackeray. The Sena founder liked the sea-facing heritage bungalow at Dadar seaface and used to hold several meetings there.
Though a makeshift memorial in the form of a tiny garden strip was developed after the Sena founder was cremated at Shivaji Park on November 17, 2012, there was unanimity among parties that a grand memorial was needed. The plan took off during Fadnavis’s tenure as chief minister with the state government giving a go-ahead for the ₹400 crore memorial at the Mayor’s bungalow, a century old heritage property.
The project spread over 6,056 square meters includes underground galleries which will display the work of the late Sena founder who was also a cartoonist and have audio-visual clips and films on his life and career. It will also have a gallery on the Thackeray family and the history of Shiv Sena. The memorial is expected to be ready by the end of 2023.
During the tenure of Fadnavis led BJP-SENA government, it was handed over to Balasaheb Thackeray Rashtriya Smarak Trust then headed by Uddhav. Senior Sena leader Subhash Desai was the secretary and officials from MMRDA and state government were members. After he became chief minister, Uddhav resigned and Aaditya was appointed in his place.
Now things have changed. The Shiv Sena is split into two. Uddhav tops the list of enemies of the ruling combine. The CM is apparently not in favour of the current arrangement while Fadnavis is clear that it should not be allowed to be treated as a private establishment by the Thackerays.
There seems to be a strong opinion in both the parties — Shinde led Balsahebanchi Shiv Sena as well as the BJP — that the memorial should be controlled by the government. Many in the Shinde faction do not want the father-son duo to be in charge of the memorial which could also be seen as a public gesture that they are carrying forward his legacy, contrary to the Shinde faction’s stance that they are the real heir to Bal Thackeray’s political legacy.
“One option is to make the CM the ex-officio president of the trust and have all the powers in his hand and keep one or two members of Thackeray family as members of the trust,” said a senior official from the chief minister’s office.
But then, Shinde-fadnavis would have to consider what could be the fallout of the decision. Both the parties are still wary that Uddhav could get sympathy of Marathi manoos during the polls. As such, pros and cons of such a move will be weighed before taking away control of the Bal Thackeray memorial from his son and grandson.
Crash course in Savarkar’s Hindutva
On the eve of Thackeray’s 10th death anniversary, MLAS, MPS and other leaders from Shiv faction had to attend a seminar, Varasa Vicharancha, on the legacy of V D Savarkar and Thackeray. The gathering was addressed by writer-poet Dr Sanjay Upadhye and Ranjit Savarkar, grand-nephew of Veer Savarkar. The highlight of the programme turned out to be the address by Devendra Fadnavis who launched a scathing attack on Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for the latter’s comments on Savarkar. Fadnavis also pointed at how the Hindutva proposed by Savarkar and Thackeray was the same. The seminar turned out to be a crash course on Hindutva for the legislators of Shinde faction. What did they make of it? We can expect see their public comments soon as the controversy is still raging on.
Fadnavis & puran poli
During an interaction with students of Dadar’s Balmohan School on Children’s Day, Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis was asked what sweet he likes, He immediately replied that he does not like puran poli, a Maharashtrian dessert. There was a reason behind it. In a cookery show on TV, his wife Amruta Fadnavis had revealed that her husband’s friend had told her that the BJP strongman from Nagpur had once eaten more than 30 puran polis to win a bet. “After what my wife said in the show, wherever I go, people offer me puranpoli. I want to make it clear. I don’t like puran poli. I can eat one but that too not all the time,” Fadnavis insisted, evoking roars of laughter from the children.