The year was 2005. Narayan Rane had just quit the Shiv Sena on a bitter note. A man who Bal Thackeray trusted to be the chief minister of Maharashtra in 1999, attempted a show of strength by organising a meeting with his supporters outside the Shiv Sena shakha at the party mouthpiece Saamana's office in Mumbai's Prabhadevi. The Sena of that time, however, not only clashed with Rane's supporters but also set the erected stage ablaze.
Come 7 June 2023, chief minster Eknath Shinde's son and Lok Sabha MP Shrikant Shinde organised a rally outside the Saamana office and addressed Shiv Sena supporters as a part of the party's 'Shakha Sampark Abhiyan'. Saamana is still controlled by Uddhav Thackeray's Shiv Sena even after Eknath Shinde split away with a majority of the party's lawmakers. His rally, therefore, was seen as a similar show of strength.
This came just days before his conflict with the Kalyan-Dombivali unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) became public. This is the constituency he represents in the Lok Sabha.
Shrikant Shinde at 'Shakha Sampark Abhiyan' rally in Mumbai's Prabhadevi on 7 June.
(Photo: Twitter/Shrikant Shinde)
A rift in any political alliance, especially one like the Shinde-Devendra Fadnavis arrangement, was anticipated as the state faces both Lok Sabha and Assembly Elections in 2024. But the fact that any possible rift would involve the son of the chief minister, was unexpected.
An orthopaedic surgeon-turned-politician, two-time MP from Kalyan-Dombivali, second-in-command for matters related to the Shiv Sena, and the Shinde-led party's counter to Aditya Thackeray in Mumbai - the rise of Shirikant Shinde in Maharashtra's politics has been meteoric in the one year since the fall of the Maha Vaikas Aghadi (MVA).
Conflict With the BJP
On 9 June, Shrikant in a video message said: ""People of the Kalyan Lok Sabha have voted for me abundantly since the past nine years. I have supported workers of both parties on every issue. While work is going well, some people in the alliance should not try to sow differences within the alliance. We should ensure that we work together, and Narendra Modi becomes the PM again in 2024. Nobody should have selfish motives. If you want me to resign as Lok Sabha MP, I will resign tomorrow and work for the party and the alliance"
Shrikant Shinde's barb of 'selfish politics' on BJP leaders from Kalyan-Dombivali came after the local BJP unit passed a resolution to not support Eknath Shinde's Shiv Sena in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. The point of friction is reportedly a case of molestation against Nandu Joshi, a prominent leader in Kalyan-Dombivali and East Mandal president.
The BJP leaders have alleged that Joshi is being framed by the Sena to settle political scores.
File photo of Shrikant Shinde in Kalyan-Dombivali constituency.
(Photo: Twitter/Shrikant Shinde)
The resolution passed by the local leaders was in the presence of cabinet minister Ravindra Chavan, who also reportedly said that it was the hardwork of the local BJP cadre that ensured Dr Shinde's victory twice. Joshi is believed to be a close confidante of Chavan.
A day after Shrikant's 'offer' to resign, state BJP president Chandrashekhar Bawankule assured that the constituency belongs to the Sena leader and that the BJP will ensure his victory with a larger margin in the upcoming elections.
The Shakha Outreach: A Leaf Out of Aaditya Thackeray's Playbook
Ever since the split, former cabinet minister and Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray has been aggressive in garnering support for the weakened Thackeray faction. An MLA from south Mumbai's Worli, Aaditya has been vocal particularly about the issues of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and has relentlessly been raising the delay in holding elections for the BMC and alleging scams by the civic body.
Since 31 May, Shrikant is undertaking the 'Shakha Sampark Abhiyan,' an outreach to the shakhas of the Shiv Sena which the party workers and supporters have direct access to. Shrikant has been spending time at the shakhas, listening to people's grievances, and attempting to resolve them in order to strengthen the ground connect of the Shinde faction, an aspect which the party is believed to be lacking in so far.
The Shinde-led party has been aggressively campaigning for the outreach program on social media too.
Shrikant Shinde interacts with party workers at a Mumbai shakha.
(Photo: Twitter/Shrikant Shinde)
"The outreach is to understand and help resolve the problems of the people on the ground. This drive is to meet the Shiv Sainiks who work hard all day in their respective professions and still come to help resolve people's problems at the shakhas in the evening. The women Shiv Sainiks work at home all day, take care of their children, and then come to the shakhas in the evening to help people. Those inspired by the values of Balasaheb Thackeray come to these shakhas in large numbers. The youth will keep getting inspired by such people, that is the motive of the Shakha Sampark Abhiyan," says an audio-visual message by Shrikant Shinde being shared on social media.
A pramukh of one of Mumbai's shakhas, on the the condition of anonymity, said: "The Shiv Sena thrives on the connect with the party workers and cadre and shakhas have allowed the top leaders of the party to directly help people resolve their issues. The shakhas were a brainchild of honourable Balasaheb Thackeray, that is how he kept in touch with the local party workers. Precisely why, efforts were made in the past one year to form shakhas in not just the constituencies where MLAs are supporting Shinde saheb but in most constituencies across the state. We have been able to appoint pramukhs in most of these shakhas. Shrikant Shinde ji visiting shakhas will only strengthen them."
The Battle for Mumbai
Many see the outreach as the replication of a similar initiative of shakha outreach undertaken by Aaditya immediately after the Sena split last year.
According to sources, Shrikant is being touted as an alternative to Aaditya in Mumbai. He is also believed to be heralding several beautification projects in Mumbai, a pet project of CM Eknath Shinde who launched over 500 such projects in November last year.
File photo of Shrikant Shinde, Aaditya Thackeray, and Uddhav Thackeray.
(Photo: Twitter)
Mumbai has been the turf of the Shiv Sena for close to three decades, with the party dominating the BMC elections which have been due since 2022. While Shinde held the undivided Sena's turf in Thane, the Thackerays dominated Mumbai with Aditya being the key urban face in the metropolitan.
As per sources, Shrikant is personally looking into Mumbai's beautification projects, holding meetings with bureaucrats, and pushing for upliftment and urbanisation of several areas including koliwadas (coastal areas dominated by fisherfolks).
Since April, Shrikant has held two meetings with BMC Commissioner Iqbal Singh Chahal twice to discuss development projects. In the meeting held with Chahal last week, Shrikant Shinde also reportedly pushed for stalled housing projects of the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA) and City and Industrial Development Corporation (CIDCO). Part of the Mumbai beautification projects, Shrikant also discussed the undergoing concretisation of Mumbai's roads.
An orthopeadic surgeon, Shrikant runs a foundation Dr Shrikant Shinde Foundation which aides and assists the poor and the underprivileged with medical check ups and surgeries.
According to sources, Shrikant has been heralding setting up of party's 'Aapla Davakhana' (your clinic) initiative in Mumbai, in line with Delhi's Mohalla Clinics, with posters promoting them erected at most public places and BEST bus stops across the city.
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