Shiv Sena | |
|---|---|
| Founder | Bal Thackeray |
| Founded | 19 June 1966 (1966-06-19) |
| Dissolved | 10 October 2022 |
| Succeeded by | Shiv Sena (2022–present) Shiv Sena (UBT) |
| Headquarters | Shivsena Bhavan, Dadar, Mumbai, Maharashtra |
| Newspaper | Saamana Marmik |
| Student wing | Bharatiya Vidyarthi Sena (BVS) |
| Youth wing | Yuva Sena |
| Women's wing | Shiv Sena Mahila Aghadi |
| Ideology | Conservatism (Indian)[1] Social conservatism[2] Marathiregionalism Marathinativism[3] Hindutva[4] Hindu nationalism[5] Ultranationalism[6][7][8] Economic nationalism[9] Right-wing populism[10] |
| Political position | Right-wing[11][12] tofar-right[13][14][15] |
| Colours | Saffron |
| ECI Status | State Party |
| Alliance |
|
| Election symbol | |
 | |
Shiv Sena (1966–2022) (Śiva Sēnā;lit. 'Army ofShivaji';abbr.SS) was aconservativeMarathiregionalistHindutva-based political party inIndia founded in 1966 byBal Thackeray, who was later succeeded byUddhav Thackeray.[16][3] The party has split into two parties: the Uddhav Thackeray-ledShiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) which has a new symbol ofMashaal (Torch) and Eknath Shinde-ledShiv Sena (2022–present) which has the original party name and the "bow and arrow" symbol.
Initially apolitical, the organisation was patronised by the then Chief MinisterVasantrao Naik who used it for curbing trade unions and maintain stranglehold of theCongress.[17][18][19] The organisation at the same time carried out pro-Marathinativist movement inMumbai in which it agitated for preferential treatment for the Marathi people over migrants from other parts of India.[20]
Although Shiv Sena's primary base always remained inMaharashtra, it tried to expand to a pan-Indian base. In the 1970s, it gradually moved from advocating a pro-Marathi ideology to supporting a broader Hindu nationalist agenda,[21] and aligned itself with theBharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Shiv Sena took part in Mumbai (BMC) municipal elections for its entire existence. In 1989, it entered into an alliance with the BJP forLok Sabha as well asMaharashtra Legislative Assembly elections. The alliance in the latter was temporarily broken in the2014 elections due to seat sharing adjustment, although it was quickly reformed. Shiv Sena was one of the founding members of the BJP-ledNational Democratic Alliance (NDA) in 1998, and it also participated inVajpayee Government from 1998 to 2004 and theNarendra Modi Government from 2014 to 2019.
After2019 Maharashtra Legislative Assembly election, the party left the alliance after disagreements with BJP over the CM post. UnderUddhav Thackeray, Shiv Sena formed an alliance with its historic rivals, theIndian National Congress andNationalist Congress Party[22][23][24] Following the2022 Maharashtra political crisis, the party split.
The party once had a powerful hold over theHindi film industry.[25] It has been accused of being an "extremist",[26][27] "chauvinist",[28][29] or "fascist" party.[30][31] Shiv Sena has been allegedly involved in the1970 communal violence inBhiwandi, the1984 Bhiwandi riot, and violence in the1992–1993 Bombay riots.[32][33]
After theIndependence of India in 1947, regional administrative divisions from the colonial era were gradually changed and states following linguistic borders were created. Within theBombay Presidency, a massive popular struggle was launched for the creation of a state for the Marathi-speaking people. In 1960, the presidency was divided into two linguistic states:Gujarat andMaharashtra. Moreover, Marathi-speaking areas of the erstwhileHyderabad state were joined with Maharashtra. Bombay, in many ways the economic capital of India, became the state capital of Maharashtra. On one hand, people belonging to theGujarati community owned the majority of the industry and trade enterprises in the city.[34] There was a steady flow ofSouth Indian migrants to the city leading to fears that they would take many white-collar jobs[citation needed].
In 1960,Bal Thackeray, a Mumbai-based cartoonist, began publishing the satirical cartoon weeklyMarmik. Through this publication, he started disseminating anti-migrant sentiments. On 19 June 1966, Thackeray founded the Shiv Sena as a political organisation.
The Shiv Sena attracted many unemployed Marathi youth, who were attracted by Thackeray's charged anti-migrant oratory. Shiv Sena cadres became involved in various attacks against the South Indian communities, vandalizing South Indian restaurants and pressuring employers to hire Marathis.[21]
Initially apolitical, the organisation was patronised by the then Chief MinisterVasantrao Naik who used it for curbing trade unions and maintain stranglehold of the Congress.[17][18] Because of its close association with Vasantrao, the organisation was also referred to as "Vasant Sena".[17][19]
The Shiv Sena declared support tothe Emergency in 1975 and supported the Congress in the1977 general election.[35] In1980 Maharashtra Assembly election, the party did not contest from any seat however it campaigned for the Congress.[35][36][37]
The Sena started placing more weight on theHindutva ideology in the 1970s as the 'sons of the soil' cause was weakening.[21]
In the1984 general election, Shiv Sena formed its first alliance with theBharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Shiv Sena candidates fought on BJP's lotus symbol.[35][38]
The party began a coalition with the BJP for seats in theLok Sabha and theMaharashtra Assembly from 1989. The two formed a government in Maharashtra between 1995 and 1999.[39] The Sena was the opposition party in the state along with the BJP from 1999 to 2014. However, the 25 year alliance with the BJP was threatened in2014 Maharashtra Assembly elections over seat sharing and both contested the election independently.[39] With the BJP becoming the largest party following the 2014 election, Sena declared opposition. However, after negotiations, Sena agreed to join the government in Maharashtra.[40] The Shiv Sena-BJP combine governs theBrihanmumbai Municipal Corporation. Traditionally the main strongholds of Shiv Sena have been Mumbai and theKonkan coastal areas. However, in the2004 Lok Sabha elections the result was reversed. The Shiv Sena made inroads in the interior parts of the state, while suffering losses in Mumbai.[41]
In July 2005, FormerMaharashtra Chief Minister and Sena leaderNarayan Rane was expelled from the party, which sparked internal conflict in the party. In December the same yearRaj Thackeray, Bal Thackeray's nephew, left the party.[42] Raj Thackeray later founded a separate party,Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS).[citation needed][43]
Although the MNS is a break-away group from the Shiv Sena, the party is still based in Bhumiputra ideology. When unveiling the party in an assembly at Shivaji Park he said, everyone is anxious to see what will happen to Hindutva and, "I shall elaborate on the party's stance on issues like Hindutva, its agenda for development of Maharashtra and the significance of the party flag colours at the 19 March public meeting."[44]
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Bal Thackeray's son Uddhav Thackeray became the party's leader in 2004, although Bal Thackeray continued to be an important figurehead. After the death of Bal Thackeray on 17 November 2012, Uddhav became the leader of the party but refused to take the title "Shiv Sena Pramukh" (Eng : Shiv Sena Supremo).[45][46]
The Shiv Sena party's ideology has undergone changes since its formation. Initially, it started with the ideology of Marathiregionalism under the leadership ofBal Thackeray.[47][7] However, the party shifted towardsultranationalism andright-wing populism over time, which helped them form an alliance with theBharatiya Janata Party (BJP).[48][49][verification needed] WhenUddhav Thackeray became the party leader, he gradually shifted towards composite nationalism and formed an alliance with the Congress and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP).[50] This shift in ideology was a significant departure from Shiv Sena's traditional stance, as the party had been historically opposed to theCongress andNCP for the majority of its existence.
In late June 2022,Eknath Shinde, a senior Shiv Sena leader, and the majority ofMLAs from Shiv Sena joined hands with the BJP.[51][52][53] GovernorBhagat Singh Koshyari called for a trust vote, an action that would later on be described as a "sad spectacle"[54] bySupreme Court of India, and draw criticism from Political Observers.[55]Uddhav Thackeray resigned from the post as chief minister well as a MLC member ahead ofno-confidence motion on 29 June 2022.[56] Shinde subsequently formed a new coalition with the BJP, and was sworn in as the Chief Minister on 30 June 2022.[57] Uddhav Thackeray filed a lawsuit with theSupreme Court of India claiming that Eknath Shinde and his group's actions meant that they were disqualified under theanti-defection law, with Eknath Shinde claiming that he has not defected, but rather represents the true Shiv Sena party.[58] The case is currently being heard bySupreme Court of India.[58][59] The parties split into two factions:Balasahebanchi Shiv Sena led by Shinde andShiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) led by Thackeray.
Shinde subsequently filed a petition with theElection Commission of India staking his claim to the 'Shiv Sena' name and the Bow and Arrow symbol. The ECI ruled in favour of Shinde's faction based on the strength of its legislative wing, rather than on the organizational wing.[60][61][62] Thackeray appealed against the decision, and the case is currently pending in the Supreme Court.[63]
The Shiv Sena (SS) was led by a president, traditionally referred to as the "Shiv Sena Pramukh", (transl. Chief) which translates to "Shiv Sena Chief" in English.[64] Bal Thackeray served as the first Shiv SenaPramukh and took all major decisions while the activists and members of the Shiv Sena, known as ShivSainiks, (transl. Soldiers) carried out most of the party's grassroots work. During his last days, the day-to-day activities of the party were handled by his youngest son Uddhav Thackeray, who succeeded him as party leader after his death in 2012.
Shiv Sena formed a network of grassroots organizations, known as "Shiv Sena Shakhas" (transl. Branch). TheShakhas serve as the primary unit of the party, with eachShakha consisting of 25-50 members. TheShakhas were responsible for carrying out the party's activities at the grassroots level, such as mobilizing voters during elections, organizing protests and rallies, and engaging in community service activities.[65]
In addition to theShakhas, the party has various other organizational structures, including theYuva Sena, (transl. Youth Army) party's youth wing, and theMahila Aghadi, the party's women's wing. The Shiv Sena is also affiliated with theSthaniya Lokadhikar Samiti,[66] which advocates for the preservation of employment rights forMaharashtrians in Maharashtra.
Prior to the rebellion by its prominent leader Eknath Shinde in 2022, the party was in hand ofThackeray family, thus most of the important positions was hold by Bal Thackeray's son and grandson that is Uddhav andAditya Thackeray respectively. Opposition parties frequently alleged Shiva Sena as a dynastic political party. Bal Thackeray never remained on any elected political position but he never vacated the position of Shiva Sena supremo and ruled as a Godfather or king maker.[67]
For the first time ever, Thackeray family directly participated in election when Aditya contested for a seat of MLA in 2019. Later, his father debuted in direct politics and becamechief minister of the state. Aditya was the tourism minister hisfather's cabinet.
People of various Maharashtrian castes worked together in the Sena. The party's leaders mostly came from the "high castes" that isBrahmins,Chandraseniya Kayastha Prabhu andPathare Prabhus - Thackerey,Manohar Joshi,Sudhir Joshi, Balwant Mantri, Hemchandra Gupte, Shyam Deshmukh, Madhav Deshpande, Datta Pradhan, Vijay Parvatkar,Madhukar Sarpotdar andPramod Navalkar.[68]One of the above-mentioned leaders, Hemchandra Gupte, who wasMayor of Bombay in the early 70s and was the former family physician and confidant of Thackeray, quit Shivsena citing flaws such as importance given to money, violence committed by theShivsainiks (transl. Soldiers) and Bal Thackeray's support to then prime ministerIndira Gandhi during the1975 emergency.[69]
There were also leaders from other castes such asDattaji Salvi,Dattaji Nalawade andWamanrao Mahadik, and those from the lower castes such asChaggan Bhujbal,Leeladhar Dake, Bhai Shingre and Vijay Gaonkar.[68][year needed]
Over the years, other than the Bal Thackeray, there have been twelve senior leaders in the party, out of these, eight have been fromupper caste (four wereBrahmins, twoChandraseniya Kayastha Prabhu and twoPathare Prabhus). Others have been eitherMaratha (Dattaji Salvi),Shimpi (Wamanrao Mahadik),Agri (Leeladhar Dake) orMali (Chaggan Bhujbal). In fact, Bhujbal quit the party accusing the party is biased towards upper caste people.[68]
The number ofDalits were also not insignificant and even after the Sena opposed the reservations proposed by theMandal commission, there was no dent in the percentage ofOther Backward Class in the party. In this way, the Sena was successful in uniting all Maharashtrians irrespective of caste under the common "Marathi umbrella". The agenda of preferential treatment for the "sons of the soil" that is Maharashtrians brought them all together.[68]
Shiv Sena's strength in the late 1980s and early '90s mainly came from the support of theMaratha caste - which it drew away from the Congress.[70] Citing the large percentage of MLAs elected from Shiv Sena belonging to theMaratha caste, Vora from theUniversity of Pune concludes that the Shiv Sena has been emerging as a "Maratha Party".[71]
ShivsenaBhavan (transl. House), was the central office of the Shiv Sena, located inRam Ganesh Gadkari Chowk andShivaji Park inDadar,Mumbai.[72] It was first inaugurated on 19 June 1977, and refurbished and re-inaugurated on 27 July 2006. It has aCopper Statue ofShivaji Maharaj and a largePoster ofBal Thackeray. In the1993 Bombay bombings, terrorists planted a powerful bomb in ShivsenaBhavan; it exploded and the building received damage.[73]
Matoshri, the house of Bal Thackeray and Uddhav Thackeray was an important building in this party. Many high-profile meetings usually held in it. It worked as a command and control centre of the party in Bal–Uddhava's regime.
Following is the list of the chief ministers ofMaharashtra from Shiv Sena.
| No. | Portrait | Name (Birth–Death) | Tenure | Constituency | Assembly | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assumed office | Left office | Time in office | |||||
| 1 |  | Manohar Joshi (1937–2024) | 14 March 1995 | 1 February 1999 | 3 years, 324 days | Dadar | 9th (1995) |
| 2 |  | Narayan Rane (born 1952) | 1 February 1999 | 18 October 1999 | 259 days | Malvan | |
| 3 | _(cropped).jpg) | Uddhav Thackeray (born 1960) | 28 November 2019 | 30 June 2022 | 2 years, 214 days | MLC | 14th (2019) |
| No. | Name | Term in office | Portfolio | Prime Minister | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Manohar Joshi | 19 October 1999 | 9 May 2002 | Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises,13thSpeaker of the Lok Sabha | Atal Bihari Vajpayee | |
| 2 | Anandrao Vithoba Adsul | August 2002 | May 2004 | Ministry of State, Finance and Company Affairs | ||
| 3 | Suresh Prabhu | 13 October 1999 | 25 August 2002 | Minister of Chemicals and Fertilizers,Ministry of Power,Ministry of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises | ||
| 4 | Anant Geete | 26 August 2002 | 22 May 2004 | Minister of Power | ||
| 16 May 2014 | 30 May 2019 | Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises | Narendra Modi | |||
| 5 | Arvind Sawant | 30 May 2019 | 11 November 2019 | Ministry of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises | ||
| Year | Seats won | Change in seats |
|---|---|---|
| 1989 | 1 / 48 |  1 |
| 1991 | 4 / 48 | 3 |
| 1996 | 15 / 48 | 11 |
| 1998 | 6 / 48 |  9 |
| 1999 | 15 / 48 | 9 |
| 2004 | 12 / 48 | 3 |
| 2009 | 11 / 48 | 1 |
| 2014 | 18 / 48 | 7 |
| 2019 | 18 / 48 |  |
| Year | Party leader | Seats won | +/- | Voteshare (%) | +/- (%) | Popular vote | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | Bal Thackeray | 52 / 288 | 52 | 15.94% | 15.94% | 4,733,834 | Opposition |
| 1995 | 73 / 288 | 21 | 16.39% | 0.45% | 6,315,493 | Government | |
| 1999 | 69 / 288 | 4 | 17.33% | 0.94% | 5,692,812 | Opposition | |
| 2004 | 62 / 288 | 7 | 19.97% | 2.64% | 8,351,654 | Opposition | |
| 2009 | 44 / 288 | 18 | 16.26% | 3.71% | 7,369,030 | Opposition | |
| 2014 | Uddhav Thackeray | 63 / 288 | 19 | 19.35% | 3.09% | 10,235,970 | Government |
| 2019 | 56 / 288 | 7 | 16.41% | 3.04% | 9,049,789 | Government |
The Sena says it has played a central role in the emancipation of 500,000 slum dwellers in theDharavi area of Mumbai, the largest slum in Asia. However, the policy of giving free houses to slum dwellers has been controversial since it was introduced by the then Shiv Sena-BJP government.[98][99][100][further explanation needed]
In the 1970s, Shiv Sena was opposed to theNamantar Andolan, aDalit-led movement to change the name of Marathwada University inAurangabad to "Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar University", and supported views of conservative Marathas.[101]
In 1996, Shiv Sena organised the first and only live concert of American pop iconMichael Jackson in India to raise the funds for its business wing and to help create over two-hundred seventy thousand jobs for people ofMaharashtra.[102][103]
Shiv Sena got an entry inGuinness Book of World Records in 2010 for "collecting maximum blood in a day". Shiv Sena organized a blood donation camp which collected over 24,000 bottles of blood in a single day.[104][105] Later this world record was broken by a blood donation camp ofHDFC Bank in 2014.[106]
In 2015 Shiv Sena announced 10,000 rupees help to each drought-affected farmer ofMarathwada region,[107] while they also announced 2 lakh rupees "reward" to Hindus family who had 5 children between 2010 and 2015 inUttar Pradesh. As per Shiv Sena, the reason behind the "reward" was "decline in growth rate of Hindu population compared to Muslim population as per recent census".[108][109]
In January 2016, the Shiv Sena demanded that the words "secular" and "socialist" be "permanently removed" from theConstitution's Preamble which were added in the42nd amendment duringthe emergency.[110] In April 2019, party memberSanjay Raut called for theburqa to be banned.[111][112]
The Shiv Sena has been involved in several controversies, ranging from hooliganism, criminal activities, spreading religious bigotry, and moral policing.
In December 2003, Shiv Sena activists damaged the cricket pitch of the Agra Sport Stadium which was supposed to host the cricket match between Pakistan and India.[citation needed] In April 2005, Bharatiya Vidyarthi Sena, the student wing of Shiv Sena, attempted to prevent the India-PakistanOne-day international match being held in New Delhi. The protester's spokesman demanded:
India should not play cricket with Pakistan till it hands over to India 20 terrorists, includingDawood Ibrahim, and closes down militant training camps running there.[113]
The Sena acted as a "moral police" and opposed Valentine's Day celebrations.[76] On 14 February 2006, Bal Thackeray condemned and apologised for the violent attacks by its Shiv Sainiks on a private celebration in Mumbai. "It is said that women were beaten up in the Nallasopara incident. If that really happened, then it is a symbol of cowardice. I have always instructed Shiv Sainiks that in any situation women should not be humiliated and harassed."[114] Thackeray and the Shiv Sena remained opposed to it, although they indicated support for an "Indian alternative".[115][116]
On 20 November 2009, Shiv Sena activists attacked and vandalised the offices ofHindi andMarathi language TV news channelsIBN7 andIBN-Lokmat, located in Mumbai andPune respectively. The Shivsainik slapped IBN7's senior editor Ravindra Ambekar and then attacked IBN-Lokmat's editor Nikhil Wagle. Shiv Sena attributed the attacks to the criticisms ofBal Thackeray by the news channel over his remarks onSachin Tendulkar. Shiv Sena'sRajya SabhaMP Sanjay Raut described the attacks as "spontaneous". Shiv Sena spokespersons tried to justify the attacks and refused to apologize for their acts of violence.[117][118][119]
During the2011 Cricket World Cup, Shiv Sena leaders threatened to disrupt the final in Mumbai if the Pakistani team qualified.[120] The Sena has opposed any sporting events between India and Pakistan following theNovember 2008 terror attacks in Mumbai, which was perpetrated by Pakistan based terrorist groupLashkar-e-Taiba, besides opposing inclusion of Pakistani players in theIndian Premier League.[121]
On 18 November 2012, following the death of founderBal Thackeray,Mumbai Police, under the pressure of Shiv Sena workers and activists, arrested a 21-year-old woman who posted a Facebook comment against him, as well as her friend who "liked" the comment. Shiv Sena members, who took it as an insult, vandalised the clinic owned by the woman's relative.[122][123] The charges were subsequently dropped in January 2013, and in July 2014, the Government of Maharashtra was ordered to pay compensation of Rs 50,000 to each victim after the National Human Rights Commission noted that the detention was illegal and violated rights to freedom of speech and expression.[124]
On 2 November 2014, during theKiss of Love protest against moral policing, members of Shiv Sena,Bajrang Dal,Vishwa Hindu Parishad and many other right wing groups opposed and attacked protestors and threatened to strip protestors for kissing on the streets. These opposing groups claimed thatpublic display of affection is against both Indian culture and the law of the land (under section 294 of the Indian Penal Code), though according to the Supreme Court and the Delhi High Court, kissing in public is not a criminal offence.[125][126] Police took many of the Kiss of Love protestors into custody to save their lives, but were blamed for giving a free hand to counter protestors of the right wing groups.[127]
In October 2015, Shiv Sena issued threats which enforced a ban on a scheduled concert by Pakistani classic singerGhulam Ali. The move was adopted to appease anti-Pakistan constituents to vote for Sena in coming elections.[128] However, in 2015 Pakistan urged the international community to take note of the activities of Shiv Sena,[129] while Shiv Sena claimed that criticism of Shiv Sena by Pakistan vindicates "our patriotism".[130]
On 19 October 2015, Shiv Sena activists attacked and vandalised the office ofBCCI to stop a meeting betweenPCB andBCCI officials. The activists shouted anti-Pakistan slogans and held posters that read 'Shahryar Khan go back', determined to stop Manohar from meeting his Pakistani counterpart. Shiv Sena has also threatened to stop Pakistan's Aleem Dar from officiating in the fifth and final ODI between India and South Africa.[131]
On 23 March 2017, while travelling toDelhi fromPune, Shiv Sena leaderRavindra Gaikwad was accused of thrashingAir India staff with his shoe, when they tried to make him disembark the plane, after being denied a business class seat because the flight was all-economy.[132] TheDelhi Police had charged him with hitting government staff on duty, as well as taking the plane ransom without departing from the plane. The incident led to the creation ofNo-Fly List in India, and Gaikwad was the first person to be put on the list.[133][134]
On 19 July 2017,Malishka Mendonsa, a popular radio jockey ofRed FM, released a parody video on YouTube targeting theBrihanmumbai Municipal Corporation for incompetence in dealing potholed roads. In response to the video, the BMC and Shiv Sena slammed her and sent a notice imposing a penalty of Rs 10,000 for defamation.[135] As a result of the notice, several political parties criticized the BMC and Shiv Sena for intolerance towards criticism, as 2 Shiv Sena corporators sent a legal notice with a suit of Rs. 500 cr (Rs. 5 billion) against the RJ and Red FM.[136] Malishka made another parody video against the BMC and released it on 17 July 2018, describing the incapability and pathetic conditions of Mumbai's infrastructure in the monsoons.[137]
During the 2018 Maharashtra Council election and the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, many candidates fielded by Shiv Sena had criminal records or had criminal charges pending against them.[138][139]
Following actressKangana Ranaut's criticism ofUddhav Thackeray and his Government for mishandling thedeath of Sushant Singh Rajput in September 2020, Shiv Sena leaders, includingSanjay Raut issued threats to her.[140] On the orders of Shiv Sena leaders, theBrihanmumbai Municipal Corporation demolished a portion of her house. Following the demolition, theBombay High Court criticized the BMC and ruled in her favour, noting that BMC acted with malice and ordered BMC to pay compensation to Ranaut.[141] Due to the nature of threats, Ranaut was given security from theCentral Reserve Police Force from the Central Government.[142]
...the usually-conservative Shiv Sena has now moved to give itself a branding twist with events like 'Aaditya Samvad','Friends of Aaditya' and 'Mauli Samvad' — with a bit of advice from poll strategist Prashant Kishor.
Renominations for leaders like Chandrakant Khaire, Bhavna Gawli, Anandrao Adsul and Union minister Anant Gite for the Lok Sabha elections reflect the Shiv Sena's conservative mindset, they added
In 1995, when the conservative Shiv Sena Party took power in elections in Maharashtra state (Mumbai is its capital)...
The ball now was in the court of the BJP's oldest ally in the state as well as at the central level: the Shiv Sena, a regionalist right-wing force, which won 56 seats
"Rather than uniting Hindus against Muslims, what the duo have succeeded in doing is to alienate their own hard-core allies, namely the right-wing Shiv Sena and those erring Hindutva fans that had elected the Bharatiya Janata Party government in Assam.
Consider this. The 53-year-old Shiv Sena is a stridently right-wing Hindu party. It began as an ethnic, nativist outfit to support the interests of Mumbai's Marathi-speaking people.
the far-right Shiv Sena
The far-right Shiv Sena party
Shiv Sena: The Indian Far Right
The ball now was in the court of the BJP's oldest ally in the state as well as at the central level: the Shiv Sena, a regionalist right-wing force, which won 56 seats
The then chief minister of Maharashtra, Vasantrao Naik, deliberately encouraged this newly formed political grouping— despite its narrow concern with Maharashtra for Maharashtrians - to break the stranglehold of the Left unions
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link){{cite journal}}:Cite journal requires|journal= (help)CS1 maint: DOI inactive as of July 2025 (link)Its (Sena's) thrust on the economic upliftment of Maharashtrians and demand for preferential treatment of the sons of soil in employment drew the working class towards it. They wanted someone to focus on the issue that mattered to them most:Jobs. Besides, people of various castes worked together in the Sena. Though, from among the party's leaders, Thackerey, Manohar Joshi, Sudhir Joshi, Balwant Mantri, Dr Hemchandra Gupte, Shyam Deshmukh, Madhav Deshpande, Datta Pradhan, Vijay Parvatkar, Madhukar Sarpotdar and Pramod Navalkar came from the so called high castes (they were either Brahmins, Pathare Prabhus or Chandraseniya Kayastha Prabhus) and middle class localities like Dadar and Girgaum, rubbing shoulders with them were leaders from the working class areas of Lalbaug-Parel such as Dattaji Salvi, Dattaji Nalavade and Wamanrao Mahadik, and those from the so called lower castes such as Chaggan Bhujbal, Leeladhar Dake, Bhai Shingre and Vijay Gaonkar.... In fact, 70 per cent of Sainiks have belonged to the OBC category, and even after the party opposed the Mandal Commission recommendations, the percentage of OBCs in the Sena did not go down.
18: According to Hemchandra Gupte, a former confidante of Thackeray, his major reason for leaving the party for his growing disgust with the prominence of money and the "goonda'ization" of the party(interview, 5th October 1992). 21.Interview, 3 October 1992, with Hemchandra Gupte, physician, formerly Bal Thackeray's family doctor, and Shiv Sena's mayor of Bombay from 1971 to 1972. Dr. Gupte left Shiv Sena in 1976 because of Thackerey's support for Mrs.Gandhi and the emergency.
Shiv Sena's strength primarily came from Maratha support, which it drew away from the Congress
The Shiv Sena is emerging as another Maratha party if we go by the number of Marathas elected on its ticket in the last four elections to the Vidhan Sabha.
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