Raj's Dud Bombshell

At last, Raj Thackarey did it – or one could argue did nothing. A while back, N and I were discussing Raj’s possible move and for some reason, I thought that he would do nothing. N’s view was that Raj has little alternative but to form another party. That was also the opinion of the Great Maratha Sharadchandraji Pawarsaheb. Raj can’t go back to Shiv Sena now – even though the Hindu Hriday Samrat continues to be his demigod. It is unlikely that he will join Congress, NCP or BJP. So he is left with little alternative but to form his own faction – the Shiv Raj Sena as many have already called it –in the near future or go into a political oblivion.

But, whenever Raj does that, what is this faction going to stand for? What ideology will this new faction perpetuate? In fact, let us ask a different question – What does Raj stand for today? How much or what do we know about Raj today that will enable us to vote for his faction – if there is one – in the future? The gut wrenching letter the nephew wrote to his demigod had nothing to do with the policy matters. It was a vague complaint about the elder cousin – more like a childhood fight, where the older cousins do not want to play with you. Wasn’t that the main point? Only Uddhav gets to enjoy the spoils of being an Executive President, I don’t, uncle, do something about it. Admittedly, the uncle didn’t do anything about it. He wisely or unwisely, chose his son over his nephew. That’s it. That’s the end of that episode.

At 40, Shiv Sena seems to be poised for a split and many say if Raj floated his faction, many will join him. I have my own doubts though. Why would they join him? What does Raj have to his merit? Except for an uncanny resemblance in the oratory skills with his uncle, what substance do Raj’s speeches carry?

Actually, think about it – what substance does the Hindu Hriday Samrat’s speeches carry? He perhaps speaks a language that is entertaining more than enticing. In all his Dussera speeches, he has never put forth any policy. The basis of his charisma did not have any intellectual background. For the party that mandates itself for the welfare of Marathi manus, the dwindling population of Marathi speaking not just from Mumbai, but neighboring Thane, Kalyan, Dombivli area and to a large extent even from Navi Mumbai and a bit from Pune is a certificate of failure. And this is not a sudden phenomenon, but something happening for last 20 years.

When the Shiv Sena first came into existence, the opposition was to the so called Lungiwalas, because they were stealing the secretarial jobs. Nay, they were more expert in doing those jobs, than an average son or daughter of a meagerly paid mill worker of Mumbai. While opposing the Lungiwalas, did Shiv Sena even think of training the untrained, unskilled workers for whose rights they were fighting? If so, those institutions surely did not live long. Except for Manohar Joshi, what vocational training institutes did Shiv Sena start, promote or sponsor? If the Western Maharashtra politicians can start and develop good educational institutes, why did Shiv Sena or the senior Shiv Sainik’s never think about it? How many scholarships did the Thackarey Family or Shiv Sena sponsor for the sake of needy and economically backward students? Did just taking out morchas, giving acerbic speeches, calling for Bombay-bandh and ridiculing other politicians help the Marathi manus?

What was Shiv Sena’s stand on the mill worker strikes? This is an important question, because the outcome of the strike really changed the social fabric in Mumbai. Many middle-class Marathi families were affected by this strike. I personally know of at least four people in direct or indirect relation and a few family friends that lost their jobs. What did Shiv Sena do for these people or do to protect the interests of the children of these people? Many children could not get the desired education or exposure because the sole breadwinner of the family was out of job. Whose fault it is that these children later growing into young men and women were not able to stand up to the competition? Naturally, I am not saying that Shiv Sena be a custodian for all these people. But it was very much possible for Shiv Sena to organize education or vocational training camps for them.

For a party that rediscovered God in Shivaji – what did they do to protect the dilapidated forts? Taking pictures from helicopter is easy and returning criticism with an answer like: “I take pictures of tigers, not jackals” is easier…but did Shiv Sena pause for a moment and create enabling infrastructure that would bring old glory back to the forts? Forget about ideological tribute. But this could have been at least an expression of gratitude towards Shivaji.

There certainly has been some help to social causes – but for a party as vociferous as Shiv Sena, you would have expected that every village hosts at least two of their ambulances; there are more schools and more sanatoriums to make their presence felt.

Primarily though, today’s situation of the Shiv Sena is because it lacks a proper ideology background. Shiv Sena never nurtured a think tank of intellects to decide on the next step. It did not allow free thought. It believed in the terrorizing schemes that had municipal representatives worried about voting records and common man worried about the riots. It believed in an attitude of carelessness when it came to implementing policies. The short-lived policy of zunka-bhakar did not work for this reason. It believes in the omniscience of their leader and his word is the last word…no questions, no differing opinions. And it is disturbing to see that this came from a journalist who grew up in the tutelage of a thought leader like the Prabhodhankar!

There is an eerie feeling – “what would happen to the Marathi manus because Shiv Sena is splitting?” But has Marathi manus and Maharashtra accepted Shiv Sena? No other state party, formed to protect the interests of locals, is in such a sorry state. Are these the reasons that Sena took close to 30 years to play a significant role in the state politics and provide an alternative to Congress? Are these the reasons, Sena lost the last general election and by-elections?

There are lots of questions for Raj to answer. He is certainly not responsible for the past of Shiv Sena. But he can frame the future. It is time you stop sulking Raj – let us hear what you have for us. Take a stand; perhaps more people will then say Raj Thackarey, tum age baDho, hum tumhare saath hai!