Mumbai: In preparation for the local body polls expected to be held across Maharashtra this year or early next year, Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has taken a leaf out of his mentor, Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray’s book, by getting a ‘Bhimshakti’ in his corner. But whether it will yield any political advantage remains to be seen.
The Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena on Wednesday clinched an alliance with the Republican Sena, a political outfit led by Anandraj Ambedkar, Dr B.R. Ambedkar’s grandson.
Analysts, however, say, Shinde’s ‘Bhimshakti’ alliance is mere posturing at a time when the Shinde-led Shiv Sena is facing power tussles with ally Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its image has suffered a beating due to back-to-back controversies stirred by its leaders.
Ahead of the 2012 civic polls, the undivided Shiv Sena under Bal Thackeray along with its ally Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) forged an alliance with Ramdas Athavale’s Republican Party of India (RPI), despite the Shiv Sena’s strained past with the Dalit community. The gambit had somewhat paid off at the ballot boxes.
Political commentator Hemant Desai said, “Eknath Shinde feels like his party’s image has been getting maligned, and is looking for ways to give it a boost ahead of local body polls. He also wants to show that his party has a solid existence and can bring together leaders from diverse communities. But, politically, there will be no impact of this alliance. It just helps in posturing and spinning a narrative.”
In the past month, leaders from the Shinde-led Shiv Sena such as Sanjay Gaikwad, Sanjay Shirsat and Sanjay Rathod have faced allegations of inappropriate behaviour or graft. On Monday, Deputy CM Shinde also warned his party cadre to not cause him any embarrassment. The BJP, meanwhile, has taken political advantage of these controversies, distancing itself from them in trying to win the perception battle.
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Shinde’s first attempt at social engineering
Dr Sanjay Patil, researcher at Mumbai University’s politics and civics department, told ThePrint, “The local body polls are still some time away. The alliance is unlikely to bring any political gains as such. Prakash Ambedkar’s name and party still has some following in parts of Maharashtra, but Anandraj Ambedkar has not developed the same kind of following. He has hardly spoken convincingly on issues or made any dent during elections.”
The significance of the tie-up, however, lies in the fact that this is Eknath Shinde’s first concrete attempt at social engineering, Patil said.
Prakash and Anadraj Ambedkars are both grandsons of Dr B.R. Ambedkar. Anandraj Ambedkar had unsuccessfully contested the 2024 Lok Sabha election from the Amravati constituency, getting just 1.6 percent of the total votes polled. Prakash Ambedkar had contested the same election from Akola and lost too, but had clinched 23.59 percent of total votes.
A tie-up with the ‘legacy of blood’
Post the 2012 alliance when Athavale came to the BJP-Shiv Sena fold, Athavale has remained loyal to the BJP and has been a minister of state in all three cabinets of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
On Wednesday, while announcing his party’s alliance with Anandraj Ambedkar’s outfit, Shinde recalled Bal Thackeray’s “Bhim Shakti-Shiv Shakti” formula, but emphasised more on Anandraj Ambedkar’s legacy of being Dr BR Ambedkar’s grandson.
He said, “We are two armies. One is an army that runs on the legacy of the ideology of Balasaheb Thackeray, while the other is an army that runs on the legacy of the blood of Bharatratna Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar. And that’s why we will get along really well.”
On his part, Anandraj Ambedkar said his outfit was allying with the Shinde-led Shiv Sena unconditionally.
“We have decided to go with him unconditionally. The only condition is that Eknathrao should include Ambedkarite karyakartas in power and he has given us this word,” Ambedkar said.
In 2022, Uddhav Thackeray too had looked back on his father’s “Bhimshakti-Shiv Shakti” formula by allying with Prakash Ambedkar’s Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha and assembly polls.
The alliance, however, did not work out within the broader Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance comprising the Congress, the Sharad Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and the Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray).
Prakash Ambedkar’s party ended up contesting independently, amid allegations of the VBA being the Mahayuti’s B-team, and suffered a drubbing. The Mahayuti comprises the BJP, the Shinde-led Shiv Sena and the Ajit Pawar-led NCP.
Shinde said, the alliance between the Shiv Sena (UBT) and the VBA did not work out within the larger MVA because “MVA was formed for selfish reasons”.
“We have faith in each other. Our karyakartas are in sync so there should be no such problem in the Mahayuti,” he said.
(Edited by Viny Mishra)
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