What should we call this love: Thackeray brothers are working hard for the BMC elections to be held this year.

After the crushing defeat in the assembly elections, the Thackeray brothers are trying their best to somehow save their existence in the BMC elections to be held at the end of this year, which is the biggest urban body of the country with an outlay of about Rs. 74,500 crores.

MUMBAI: Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray and MNS chief Raj Thackeray say they have come together to stay united. For the first time in 20 years, they have shared a political platform on the issue of Marathi identity and imposition of Hindi language. If anyone had any doubts about why the two parties are suddenly joining hands, it is quite obvious. In fact, both these parties had suffered huge losses in the last Maharashtra assembly elections. Shiv Sena (UBT) had won 20 seats in the election, while Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena had won 57 seats. MNS did not get a single seat.

So their workers were getting frustrated and wanted them to merge so that they could revive their fortunes. This is why Raj Thackeray quipped that Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has done the work by bringing the two cousins ​​together, which Shiv Sena founder Balasaheb Thackeray and others could not do. Uddhav’s intention was clear. At an event held in Mumbai, he declared, ‘We have come together to stay together. Together we will gain power in Mumbai Municipal Corporation and Maharashtra.’

Elections to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and other municipal bodies are due later this year. The BMC has a budget in thousands of crores of rupees. It is the largest urban body in India. The BMC presented its budget for the financial year 2025-26 on February 4, 2025, with a total outlay of Rs 74,427.41 crore. This is 14 per cent higher than previous budgets, which includes several infrastructure projects. Therefore, the BMC is the next battleground for the two political alliances (Mahayuti and Maha Vikas Aghadi) after last year’s assembly elections.

The legislature of the urban body ended in 2022 and since then it is being run by a government-appointed administrator. Shiv Sena, which has been ruling the civic body since 1985 (except for 1992-1996), is facing an existential crisis in these elections. Like the Lok Sabha and state assembly elections, two factions of Shiv Sena led by Eknath Shinde and Uddhav Thackeray are set to clash for the Marathi vote base of Shiv Sena in Mumbai. The BJP, which is strengthening its hold in Mumbai, will want to capture the BMC by joining hands with the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena.

On the other hand, the Congress will have to fight for its survival. It is not a major party in the state. After the humiliating defeat of Uddhav and Raj in the assembly elections, these municipal elections offer some hope of revival for them.

Raj Thackeray left Shiv Sena in 2005 due to bitter differences with his cousin, after which he formed the MNS. He was projecting MNS as a true champion of the interests of the sons of the soil. But he could not strike a chord with those who did not support his aggressive style, i.e. the Marathi-speaking people of Maharashtra. They preferred Uddhav, who was seen as a moderate leader. Since then, the Shiv Sena and MNS have fought elections against each other, though some of their well-wishers also appealed for a handshake. So, when the Fadnavis government dilly-dallyed on the three-language policy, they saw a big opportunity.

The inclusion of Hindi as the third language brought a much-needed common issue for Uddhav and Raj Thackeray. The real challenge for the MNS and Shiv Sena (UBT) is that more than 45 per cent of the voters in Mumbai are non-Marathi speakers. They are wary of Shiv Sena’s hardline politics and violence against them. They prefer the BJP, as the Congress is on the decline. Moreover, the Vidarbha and Marathwada regions of Maharashtra are also Hindi-speaking areas. There is no negative sentiment towards Hindi in these regions, as Marathi speakers live in harmony with others. So, if these two parties take their agitation against non-Marathi speakers too far, they may lose.

We can already see that the UBT Sena wants to remain silent. It cannot support the violence perpetrated by MNS workers against non-Marathi speakers. It is also true that the united Marathi platform by the Thackeray brothers may become a problem for Eknath Shinde. But if the non-Marathi voters get scared, it is not a winning formula for the UBT Sena and the MNS. A day before Thackeray’s rally, Eknath Shinde’s ‘Jai Gujarat’ slogan in front of Union Home Minister Amit Shah in Pune was seen as an expression of his concern about the new situation. This is why the Shiv Sena (UBT) has drawn a clear line between its stand on Hindi and the more hardline opposition seen in Tamil Nadu.

The Shiv Sena (UBT) is distancing itself from Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin’s strong comments after the Thackeray cousins’ ‘Vijay Rally’ in Mumbai. In last year’s assembly election, the BJP won 132 seats in the 288-member assembly. It remains the most influential political party in Maharashtra. Its vote share is 26.77 per cent, double the vote share of the second-placed Congress, which has a vote share of 12.42 per cent. Still, even a slight mindset shift in voters in cities like Mumbai, Thane, Pune and Nashik can seriously impact the party. So it is a no-win situation for any party.