Uddhav Thackeray visits cousin Raj on occasion of Ganesh Chaturthi in Mumbai

Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray visited his cousin and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) president Raj Thackeray's house on the occasion of Ganesh Chaturthi on Thursday (August 28). This meeting is considered a sign of growing amicability between the leaders. Later, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis also visited Raj to offer prayers to Lord Ganesh.

Every year, the MNS leader hosts a ceremony on Ganesh Chaturthi at his residence "Shivtirth" in Dadar.

Uddhav's wife Rashmi and their son Shiv Sena (UBT) MLA Aaditya Thackeray accompanied him during the visit. They met two months after Raj and Uddhav, the long-estranged cousins, shared a stage in Mumbai. Though they are both paternal and maternal cousins, they have not been seen together for years. It is to be noted that their mothers were sisters.

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Strong signal

Uddhav's visit to Raj Thackeray's home on the occasion of Maharashtra's most popular festival has sent yet another clear signal of rapprochement between the Sena (UBT) and MNS ahead of polls to local bodies, including the cash-rich Mumbai civic corporation.

After the meeting, Shiv Sena (UBT) posted the photos of the extended Thackeray family coming together on Ganesh Chaturthi on X. Among them, one photo was of Raj and Uddhav Thackeray posing in front of a portrait of their grandfather Keshav, and their fathers Shrikant and Bal Thackeray, respectively. The photo sought to send a message that the Thackerays were together despite the two cousins charting their own political course for two decades now.

This was at least the third publicly-known interaction between the once-estranged cousins. The two had shared a stage on July 5 in Mumbai to celebrate their "victory" after the Maharashtra government rolled back its contentious orders on the three-language formula for students of Classes 1 to 5 amid charges of imposition of Hindi in the state dominated by Marathi speakers. In July-end, Raj visited 'Matoshree', the residence of Uddhav Thackeray in suburban Bandra, to wish the latter on his birthday.

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Strained relationship and reunion

Although Raj quit the undivided Shiv Sena in 2005, blaming Uddhav Thackeray for his exit, the defeats of their parties in the 2024 assembly polls seem to have forced the rival cousins to join hands for political survival. Both parties have dropped enough hints of forging an alliance for the local body polls, but they have not yet announced an official tie-up.

On the other hand, if the alliance between the Thackeray cousins takes place, its main adversary will be the BJP. But it is to be noted that in the past, Raj supported the BJP and he maintains a good relationship with Fadnavis. The MNS president visited Fadnavis last week and had claimed the meeting was to discuss traffic issues plaguing the rapidly-growing cities in the state.

After quitting the undivided Shiv Sena, Raj Thackeray formed the MNS in 2006, but the party has been largely a marginal player in Maharashtra politics. On the other hand, Uddhav Thackeray has been heading the Shiv Sena (which suffered a split in June 2022) since 2013 after becoming its president.

Uddhav Thackeray reached the pinnacle of his political career in November 2019 when he came chief minister with support from the Congress and the undivided NCP.