Maharashtra's political landscape is bustling as parties distribute tickets for the upcoming assembly elections. Amidst this, Mahim in Central Mumbai emerges as a battleground where three factions – Shiv Sena, Shiv Sena UBT, and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena – are set to clash. Raj Thackeray's son, Amit Thackeray, stands as a formidable candidate from the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS).
Breaking into the political arena as the third contender from the Thackeray family, Amit stands where his father, Raj Thackeray, has never ventured. With Amit's nomination, a triangular contest arises in Mahim, pitting him against challenges from incumbent MLA Sada Sarvankar of Eknath Shinde's Shiv Sena faction and Mahesh Sawant from Shiv Sena UBT.
Raj Didn't Field Candidates Against Aaditya: A Political Gesture
Aaditya Thackeray, cousin to Amit and son of Uddhav Thackeray, clinched the Worli seat neighboring Mahim in the 2019 elections. Uddhav took on the Chief Minister's role and was elected to the Legislative Council in 2020. Despite fielding candidates against Amit, both factions of Shiv Sena faced no such opposition from Raj Thackeray when he offered unconditional support to the young Aaditya in the past.
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Amit Thackeray: The Future Lies in People's Hands
Amit Thackeray remains unfazed by his rivals, asserting his candidacy as an exercise in democracy, entrusted to him by his father, with voters determining his fate. Noting the essential nature of competition, Bala Nandgaonkar, a senior MNS leader and Sewri candidate, praised Raj Thackeray as a big-hearted leader, a rare trait today. With the lineup set, the electorate now holds the crucial decision-making power.
Source: aajtak
(Amit Thackeray with his father Raj Thackeray)
Mahim: The Stronghold of Shiv Sena – Raut
UBT Leader and MP Sanjay Raut affirmed the traditional dominance of Shiv Sena in the Dadar-Mahim seat, emphasizing its historic significance in party strategy. Anand Dubey, spokesperson for UBT, acknowledged Raj Thackeray's astuteness in candidate dealings during prior elections.
Let's explore voting patterns in Dadar-Mahim from past assembly elections:
2009
-MNS's Nitin Sardesai - 48,734 -Congress's Sada Sarvankar - 39,808 -Shiv Sena's Aadesh Bandekar - 36,364
2014 -Shiv Sena's Sada Sarvankar - 46,291 -MNS's Nitin Sardesai - 40,350 -BJP's Vilas Ambehar - 33,446
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2019
-Shiv Sena's Sada Sarvankar - 61,337 -MNS's Sandeep Deshpande - 42,690 -Congress's Praveen Naik - 15,246
Notably, MNS managed a victory only in the 2009 election when the shift of Sada Sarvankar to Congress from Shiv Sena divided the Marathi votes, allowing MNS's Nitin Sardesai to seize the advantage.
