Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray.
Credit: PTI Photo
Mumbai: As the crucial Maharashtra Legislative Assembly elections approach, the political war-of-words in Mumbai's Worli seem to be escalating.
In the 2019 Vidhan Sabha polls, Uddhav Thackeray’s son Aditya Thackeray won the election from Worli in the financial capital of Mumbai. However, five years later, in 2024, the political situation has changed.
In 2019, Aaditya was the Shiv Sena candidate and had the support of the BJP. However, after the June-July, 2022 toppling of the Shiv Sena-NCP-Congress dispensation, this situation has changed.
Subsequently, Eknath Shinde, who became the Chief Minister, successfully claimed the Shiv Sena party and then Ajit Pawar too joined the government and successfully claimed the NCP party after rebelling against his uncle Sharad Pawar.
Now the contest is between Maha Vikas Aghadi (I.N.D.I.A.) comprising Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT), Sharad Pawar-led NCP (SP) and Congress and the Maha Yuti (NDA) involving BJP, Shiv Sena and NCP.
Traditionally, the Worli seat is a Shiv Sena bastion and the party fielded Aaditya in 2019 as it was considered a safe seat.
With Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) deciding to contest, the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena may support their candidate. Raj, the estranged cousin of Uddhav Thackeray, may field Sandeep Deshpande, one of his close aides.
Besides, the Aam Aadmi Party, which is part of the I.N.D.I.A. coalition, too is planning to contest all the 36 seats of Mumbai, independently.
The Worli seat comes under the Mumbai South Lok Sabha seat, which was won by Shiv Sena (UBT) candidate after defeating Shiv Sena’s Yamini Jadhav, who is the sitting Byculla MLA.
Despite the Shiv Sena (UBT) victory, the Worli seat has seen a drop with Sawant leading by just 6,715 votes, the lowest in four of the six assembly constituencies under Mumbai South.
From chawls to sky-scrappers to a cosmopolitan mix, Worli in a way represents what is often described as the spirit of Mumbai.
The Worli seaface adores the statue of common man, the creation of legendary cartoonist RK Laxman and in front of it is the Bandra-Worli Sea Link that signifies the hustle-bustle of India's financial capital.
The spread and choice here is wide, right from vada-pav to continental dishes, to a neighborhood barber's shop to world-class saloons.