How Balasaheb Thackeray handled rebellion in Shiv Sena

Thackeray faced many challenges but the main challenge in front of him is instilling confidence in the rank in his party as Sena

Balasaheb Thackeray. Credit: PTI File Photo

Uddhav Thackeray's Shiv Sena is going through a tough phase due to infighting that brought down the ruling government in Maharashtra.

Eknath Shinde's rebellion led to the collapse of the Maha Vikas Aghadi government and Thackeray's resignation as chief minister. The challenge in front of Thackeray now is to reclaim the Shiv Sena brand and give confidence to the many who look to him for leadership.

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Thackeray's father Balasaheb had faced a similar rebellion in 2005 when Narayan Rane announced that he was quitting the party to join the Congress, which was then in power in the state. The difference between then and now is the way the Shiv Sena leadership chose to handle the situation. The senior Thackeray personally took charge then to minimise the damage caused to the party’s image. Similar efforts were taken when his nephew Raj Thackeray left the party.

"There is a huge difference between what happened then and the events unfolding now… then, we were in the Opposition," a veteran Shiv Sena leader told Hindustan Times. "This is a peculiar situation as the split happened when we were in power. Our ministers deserted the Shiv Sena to rebel."

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The leader said that when there were party rebellions earlier, there would be a huge backlash from Shiv Sainiks. "While Bal Thackeray had the 'take no prisoners' aggression, his son has a more hands-off style of leadership that has cut him off from the rank and file," he said.

Under the senior Thackeray’s leadership, there was an emotional pull that persuaded the rebels to not leave the ranks. The junior Thackeray seemed to have had no clue that a rebellion was brewing inside the party. Bal Thackeray, however, had an "intelligence gathering network and he could reach out to people beyond his immediate circle for inputs". The biggest difference between the two, the leader pointed out, was that Uddhav became a CM, which took away his attention from the management of the party.

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And now, the Shiv Sena chief faces an uphill task to win back the party's lost glory and preserve the political legacy of Bal Thackeray.