Eknath Shinde was the united Shiv Sena’s most senior leader in Thane, a satellite city of Mumbai and a stronghold of the party. The Shiv Sena, launched by Bal Thackeray in 1966, split in 2022 when Eknath Shinde led a rebellion to topple the Uddhav Thackeray-led MVA government. The new faction then formed a government with the BJP, with Shinde as CM. The new party — Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde) — now claims to be the real Shiv Sena.
Shinde was brought up in Thane, which continues to be his stronghold. In his early years in the party, he was influenced by Anand Dhige, a prominent Shiv Sena leader in the area. A Shiv Sainik who headed a shakha back in 1980s, Shinde became a corporator in the Thane Municipal Corporation before becoming an MLA in 2004. He has been a member of the assembly for four terms now. In 2019, in the Uddhav Thackeray government, he worked as Minister of Urban Development and Public Works and Minister of Home Affairs (Acting).
In its history Maharashtra has had only 2 CMs who have completed a full 5 year term. The first was Vasantrao Naik and the second was Devendra Fadnavis. The overrated Sharad Pawar never managed this feat. Hopefully Maharashtra will now see a stable 5 year term CM, leading to better outcomes for the state.
This is indeed tragic!
Two Gujaratis will decide who gets to be the CM of Maharashtra. And the one appointed as CM of Maharashtra will bow before the very same Gujaratis and take orders from them.
It’s good that Balasaheb is dead. He would not have been able to accept such humiliation.