‘Balasaheb’s Shiv Sena’ goes to Shinde – Hindustan Times

Mumbai: The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Monday permitted Eknath Shinde’s party to be named Balasahebanchi Shiv Sena (Balasaheb’s Shiv Sena) – the faction’s second choice after the first, Shiv Sena (Balasaheb Thackeray), was rejected on grounds that it was team Uddhav’s first choice, too — and asked it to submit a fresh list of symbols by 10 am today, as two of its options had religious connotations and violated the rules governing election symbols, while the third was already in use by another political party.

Team Uddhav’s second choice of name, Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray), was agreeable to the ECI, and the symbol of flaming torch was also allotted to the party. Both parties have been recognised as state parties and the symbol will be in use for the upcoming by-election in Andheri (east) assembly constituency slated for November 3.

“We have always taken the stand that this is the party of Balasaheb. I am happy to get this name. We thank the ECI,” CM Shinde said.

“We have the majority in the legislative as well as the organisational wing. As such, the bow and arrow symbol should be given to us. The ECI should consider the merit in our demand,” Shinde said. In Thane, the CM’s constituency, his party workers distributed sweets to celebrate the new name.

The Monday order was interim one and the Thackeray and Shinde factions will be allowed to use these names and symbols till the ECI decides on the dispute over which faction can use the name ‘Shiv Sena’ and the party’s bow-and-arrow symbol. In a related development, Uddhav’s team moved the Delhi high court (HC) earlier in the day on Monday seeking that the ECI order freezing the party’s name and election symbol be quashed.

Team Uddhav was quick to react to the EC’s decision that came late on Monday. The party released a video with the new symbol, and party workers gathered at shakhas around the city with flaming torches.

“We will take the name and new symbol of the party to the people. I am sure we will win the coming elections,” former minister and Sena leader Aaditya Thackeray said. “Mashal (flaming torch) is not a new symbol for us. We have also used it in the past,” he said.

Regarding the name allotted to Shinde faction, he said: “Our party’s name has Balasaheb Thackeray in it. I don’t know which Balasaheb they are referring to.”

“We know Shiv Sena as Balasaheb Thackeray’s party. We don’t know if they mean Balasaheb Thackeray or Balasaheb Deoras,” former state minister and Sena leader from team Uddhav Anil Parab said referring to former RSS chief late Balsaheb Deoras.

MLA Bhaskar Jadhav said, also from team Uddhav said, “We are thankful to the ECI for granting us the symbol and the name. This is a victory of the first political strategy of our party chief Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray.” He further said that Shinde was given a name that only carried ‘Balasaheb’ in it, and didn’t properly specify the founder of the Shiv Sena.

However, off the record, political leaders of team Uddhav said that the allocation of the name was a potential setback. Since his rebellion in June, when Shinde walked off with 39 Sena MLAs and 12 of the 19 Lok Sabha party MPs, Shinde sought legitimacy as representing the real Sena by claiming that his party follows Balasaheb’s Hindutva principles and that it stands for the Marathi manoos (the son-of-soil). Party leaders supporting him also claimed that Uddhav Thackeray compromised on these principles by allying with “secular” Congress and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) to form the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government.

A senior Sena leader from team Uddhav admitted that the name of the late party founder Balasaheb Thackeray has a talismanic appeal over the party faithful and the masses. “We have no option to fight the Andheri East assembly by-poll and the BMC elections on the symbol that has been given to us. But the reality is that eventually, we are seeking votes for Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena,” said the leader who did not wish to be named.

The allocation of the name ‘Balasahebanchi Shiv Sena’ thus helps buttress his claim over Balasaheb’s legacy.

Former corporator Sheetal Mhatre, a Shinde camp spokesperson said, “We have been given the name we have been demanding for the last three months. It has reaffirmed that we represent the original party. Today’s orders also show as to whose ideology the Uddhav Thackeray-led faction follows.”

Shinde has initiated proceedings on October 4, under the Election Symbols (Reservations and Allotment) Order, 1968, challenging Thackeray’s use of the both, in light of the upcoming upcoming by-election in Andheri (east) for which the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Thackeray-led Sena were fielding candidates.

In response to the proceedings, Thackeray sought to question the urgency of Shinde’s petition (as his faction was not fielding a candidate), but it also submitted documents to the ECI establishing his claim over the party name and symbol.

On October 8, the ECI froze both the name and symbol and asked both factions to submit three options for each by Monday. While Thackeray submitted the options Shiv Sena (Balasaheb Thackeray), Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray), and Shiv Sena (Balasaheb Prabodhankar Thackeray) as possible names for his faction, while Shinde submitted the options, Shiv Sena (Balasaheb Thackeray), Balasahebanchi Shiv Sena and Shiv Sena Balasahebanchi.

For its symbol, Thackeray gave the options of trishul (trident), rising sun and flaming torch. Shinde opted for trishul, rising sun and gada (mace). In its order Monday order, the ECI said that while the trishul and gada had religious connotations and could not be allocated, the rising sun was a symbol reserved for the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK).

The Shinde camp was asked to submit a fresh list of symbols by 10 am on October 11.

“Thackeray has no right to claim the symbols that are associated with Hindutva. The Thackeray faction has no right to ask for trident or rising sun as they gave up Hindutva when they joined hands with secular Congress and Nationalist Congress Party for the sake of power. We have been fighting for Hindutva like Balasaheb Thackeray fought all his life,” said school education minister and Shinde camp’s spokesperson Deepak Kesarkar.

However, the Sena leader from team Uddhav quoted above pointed out that Shinde mimicked their choices. “The Commission should have taken its decision on a first-come, first-serve basis, since we were the first to apply for these names and symbols,” he said. Team Uddhav made its submissions on October 8; Shinde’s faction submitted its options the following day.