Battle For Survival For Uddhav Thackeray
THE WEEK India|July 10, 2022
Two simultaneous battles have been tearing the Shiv Sena apart-one for control of the legislative party, and another for securing Balasaheb's political legacy. Winning just one may not be enough to win the larger political war
Dnyanesh Jathar
Battle For Survival For Uddhav Thackeray

The year was 1967. The Shiv Sena, formed just a year earlier, was preparing for the Lok Sabha polls. It had no candidate in the fray, but Balasaheb Thackeray had decided that his party would oppose two south Indians contesting from constituencies in Mumbai- V.K. Krishna Menon and George Fernandes. Menon was contesting as an independent and Fernandes as Samyukta Socialist Party candidate. Balasaheb supported two Congress leaders, S.G. Barve and S.K. Patil, against Menon and Fernandes, respectively.

At that time, the number two man in the Shiv Sena was Balwant Mantri. He had addressed crowds just ahead of Balasaheb at the Sena’s first-ever Dussehra rally in 1966, which made him second in the party hierarchy.

Mantri strongly believed in Balasaheb’s ‘sons of the soil’ cause, but he was temperamentally different. He wanted the Sena to be run on democratic principles. At a meeting in Vanmali Hall in Dadar, he prepared to tell the cadre about the need to run the Shiv Sena as a democratic party.

“Just as his speech was about to begin, a group of Shiv Sainiks rushed to the stage,” writes journalist Prakash Akolkar in Jai Maharashtra, a book on the Sena. “They pulled Mantri aside and began beating him. They tore off his clothes, blackened his face and body, and paraded him from Vanmali Hall to the office of Marmik (the weekly that was the Sena’s mouthpiece before Saamana was launched) in Shivaji Park area. Mantri was thrown at Thackeray’s feet and was made to apologise profusely. That was the day it became clear to the Sainiks that Thackeray’s will be the last word in party matters.”

Denne historien er fra July 10, 2022-utgaven av THE WEEK India.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

Denne historien er fra July 10, 2022-utgaven av THE WEEK India.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

FLERE HISTORIER FRA THE WEEK INDIASe alt
William Dalrymple goes further back
THE WEEK India

William Dalrymple goes further back

Indian readers have long known William Dalrymple as the chronicler nonpareil of India in the early years of the British raj. His latest book, The Golden Road, is a striking departure, since it takes him to a period from about the third century BC to the 12th-13th centuries CE.

time-read
3 mins  |
November 17, 2024
The bleat from the street
THE WEEK India

The bleat from the street

What with all the apps delivering straight to one’s doorstep, the supermarkets, the food halls and even the occasional (super-expensive) pop-up thela (cart) offering the woke from field-to-fork option, the good old veggie-market/mandi has fallen off my regular beat.

time-read
2 mins  |
November 17, 2024
Courage and conviction
THE WEEK India

Courage and conviction

Justice A.M. Ahmadi's biography by his granddaughter brings out behind-the-scenes tension in the Supreme Court as it dealt with the Babri Masjid demolition case

time-read
2 mins  |
November 17, 2024
EPIC ENTERPRISE
THE WEEK India

EPIC ENTERPRISE

Gowri Ramnarayan's translation of Ponniyin Selvan brings a fresh perspective to her grandfather's magnum opus

time-read
4 mins  |
November 17, 2024
Upgrade your jeans
THE WEEK India

Upgrade your jeans

If you don’t live in the top four-five northern states of India, winter means little else than a pair of jeans. I live in Mumbai, where only mad people wear jeans throughout the year. High temperatures and extreme levels of humidity ensure we go to work in mulmul salwars, cotton pants, or, if you are lucky like me, wear shorts every day.

time-read
2 mins  |
November 17, 2024
Garden by the sea
THE WEEK India

Garden by the sea

When Kozhikode beach became a fertile ground for ideas with Manorama Hortus

time-read
4 mins  |
November 17, 2024
RECRUITERS SPEAK
THE WEEK India

RECRUITERS SPEAK

Industry requirements and selection criteria of management graduates

time-read
3 mins  |
November 17, 2024
MORAL COMPASS
THE WEEK India

MORAL COMPASS

The need to infuse ethics into India's MBA landscape

time-read
5 mins  |
November 17, 2024
B-SCHOOLS SHOULD UNDERSTAND THAT INDIAN ECONOMY IS GOING TO WITNESS A TREMENDOUS GROWTH
THE WEEK India

B-SCHOOLS SHOULD UNDERSTAND THAT INDIAN ECONOMY IS GOING TO WITNESS A TREMENDOUS GROWTH

INTERVIEW - Prof DEBASHIS CHATTERJEE, director, Indian Institute of Management, Kozhikode

time-read
3 mins  |
November 17, 2024
COURSE CORRECTION
THE WEEK India

COURSE CORRECTION

India's best b-schools are navigating tumultuous times. Hurdles include lower salaries offered to their graduates and students misusing AI

time-read
8 mins  |
November 17, 2024