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HomePoliticsThackeray scion Aaditya may get bigger role as Shiv Sena rejigs core...

Thackeray scion Aaditya may get bigger role as Shiv Sena rejigs core team

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Uddhav Thackeray to be re-elected party president as Sena prepares to guard its home turf against BJP’s aggressive expansion plans in Maharashtra.

Mumbai: The Shiv Sena is likely to revamp its leadership team and elevate Thackeray scion Aaditya’s position in the party’s ranks during its organisational shake-up Tuesday.

The move comes at a time when the Sena is preparing to guard its home turf against the BJP’s aggressive expansion plans in Maharashtra ahead of the 2019 polls.

Although a member of the NDA, the relationship between the Sena and the BJP has been anything but cordial.

“It is being said that Aaditya Thackeray may be elevated as one of the ‘netas’ (leaders) of Shiv Sena. There will be some changes in the rest of the structure as well,” a senior Shiv Sena legislator, who did not wish to be named, told ThePrint.

“The restructuring could be a morale booster for certain party members who have the potential to work but feel neglected. For Shiv Sainiks, holding a rank within the party is more important than even being minister,” the Sena legislator added.

The organisational rejig, which coincides with Sena founder Bal Thackeray’s 92nd birth anniversary Tuesday, will be effected after the re-election of Uddhav Thackeray as party president at its national council meeting.

The election for the top post, mandated by the Election Commission of India to ensure democracy within political parties, is a mere formality with there being no other contestant for the post.

Currently, Shiv Sena has eight ‘netas’ (leaders), including party veterans Manohar Joshi, Liladhar Dake, Sudhir Joshi, Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut besides Maharashtra cabinet ministers Subhash Desai, Diwakar Raote and Ramdas Kadam.

Besides, there are three secretaries and 37 deputy leaders in the party.

As of now, Aaditya, who has been heading the Yuva Sena since he founded it in 2010, does not hold any position in the Shiv Sena. However, the 27-year-old’s importance within the party is on the rise.

Aaditya is already seen as part of the Sena’s core team along with senior leaders such as Sanjay Raut, Anil Desai or Subhash Desai, and is a trusted voice in Matoshree, the de facto headquarters of the Shiv Sena.

Most Sena ministers also have three portraits in their offices now — the most prominent one of Sena founder Bal Thackeray, followed by Uddhav and the third being of Aaditya.

The arts and law graduate was also in the forefront of the campaigning for the polls to the cash-rich Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, an election the Shiv Sena attaches utmost importance to.

By firmly establishing the Shiv Sena’s presence on social media, campaigning for football grounds and open spaces, rooftop restaurants, a 24/7 nightlife, open gyms among others, Aaditya has also brought a different dimension to the party, traditionally seen as rigid and conservative.

The party’s notorious anti-Valentine’s Day demonstrations also stopped largely due to Aaditya’s growing influence within the Sena, and the party leadership hopes that the suave Thackeray scion attracts the new-generation while its old-timers protect the party’s core voter-base.

“Aaditya Thackeray has become a youth icon through students’ movements and no party in Maharashtra has a comparable youth leadership of that stature right now,” said Sunil Shinde, a Mumbai-based legislator from the Shiv Sena.

“His appeal will only benefit the Sena in the long run and his elevation is sure to make even the larger public, beyond the Shiv Sena, happy,” Shinde added.

Another Shiv Sena leader, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said party members are also hoping that Aaditya Thackeray enters the active electoral fray in 2019. Uddhav has not contested any election; neither did Bal Thackeray.

Political analyst Prakash Bal said Aaditya’s elevation is merely Uddhav Thackeray’s bid to formalise his position within the party. “It will simply be a move to avoid any future challenge to his leadership in the party,” he said.

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