Thackeray to visit demolished Mumbra shakha on Saturday

The rift between the two Shiv Sena factions surfaced yet again after supporters of chief minister Eknath Shinde’s camp demolished a shakha in Mumbra on November 2. Shiv Sena (UBT) president Uddhav Thackeray will visit Mumbra on Saturday to challenge his opponent.

On November 2, while Mumbra city chief of the Thackeray faction, Vijay Kadam, was at the shakha along with other party workers, Rajan Kine, a leader from the Shinde camp forcefully took possession of the space. The shakha was demolished in the night, and two days ago the Shinde faction held a foundation ceremony for a new shakha. Curiously, at the time, local leaders from the Thackeray faction remained unresponsive.

Mumbra is part of Thane Municipal Corporation – the CM’s home turf. Since the split in the party, there has been a dispute over the ownership of the shakha.

“Party president Uddhav Thackeray along with other leaders will visit the shakha on Saturday. Shinde and his supporters used a bulldozer to mow down the shakha along with pictures of Shivaji Maharaj and Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray. This kind of suppression is on in Thane. If they have the courage, let them come with the bulldozers again,” said Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut.