Sena vs Sena Dussehra rally: Thackeray corners Shinde over Maratha reservation

Rival Dussehra rallies of CM Eknath Shinde and former CM Uddhav Thackeray saw Shinde accusing Thackeray of forsaking Hindutva and prostrating himself before Congress. Thackeray cornered Shinde over Maratha reservation issue, likening police lathi-charge to Jallianwala Bagh massacre.

The struggle for supremacy over the hearts and minds of the Shiv Sena cadre was played out in earnest during the rival Dussehra rallies of CM Eknath Shinde and former CM Uddhav Thackeray on Tuesday, with Mr. Shinde accusing Mr. Thackeray of forsaking his father, Bal Thackeray’s Hindutva and prostrating himself before the Congress.

Mr. Thackeray, in turn, cornered Mr. Shinde and his tripartite government (Shinde-led Sena, the BJP and the Ajit Pawar-led NCP faction) over the Maratha reservation issue, likening the police lathi-charge on Maratha quota agitators in Jalna in August to General Dyer’s order to shoot into the crowd at Jallianwala Bagh.

Addressing a packed gathering at Mumbai’s Azad Maidan, Mr. Shinde reiterated his government’s commitment to provide the Maratha community with a foolproof quota that would hold water.

“I will fight for reservation for the Maratha community till my last breath. We will achieve this without hurting the existing quota of other communities. But I fervently appeal to the community’s members not to take any extreme steps and think of the future of their families,” said the CM, accusing the Opposition of attempting to create disorder in the State by pitting Marathas against the OBC communities.

Also Read | Maratha reservation: As ‘deadline’ nears expiry, quota activist Jarange-Patil warns of going on fast unto death from October 25

Mr. Thackeray, who managed to hold his rally at Dadar’s iconic Shivaji Park for the second time since the Shiv Sena’s split in June 2022, thanked Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange Patil for leading the reservation protests in a mature manner.

“The protestors who were lathi-charged in Jalna was just how British General Dyer had unleashed the Jallianwala Bagh massacre. The villagers, who were protesting peacefully, were brutally beaten. The Maratha quota issue was also on the boil when I was CM, but that time, there was no police brutality. The police do not act without orders. So, who is the ‘General Dyer’ of Jalna” said Mr. Thackeray, targeting Mr. Shinde.