In a politically significant development, the second death anniversary of late Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray brought the estranged Thackeray cousins — Uddhav and Raj — together at the Sena patriarch’s “Smriti Sthal” at the historic Shivaji Park here on Monday, sparking speculation about a possible political reconciliation between them.
MNS chief Raj Thackeray, who had stayed away from the late Sena chief’s first death anniversary event at the Shivaji Park, not only made it to the late Thackeray’s “Smriti Sthal”, a landscaped memorial, to pay homage to his dear uncle but also spent nearly 15 minutes interacting with his estranged cousin and Sena president Uddhav Thackeray.
There was absolutely no bitterness between the two Thackeray cousins as Uddhav greeted Raj with a handshake and the two sat next to each other at the “Smriti Sthal”. Nor was there any awkwardness between the two cousins when they spoke to each other for nearly 12 minutes. Sena MP and spokesperson Sanjay Raut, who sat next to Raj, also participated in their conversation.
Monday’s was the occasions since Raj rebelled against Uddhav’s leadership and quit the Sena in December 2005, when the two Thackeray cousins were seen in public interacting with each other so amicably as was always the case in the distant past. All the same, there have been occasions when Raj and Uddhav have reached out to each other during this period of separation.
More than six and half years after he had rebelled against his elder cousin and walked out of the Sena and subsequently founded the MNS , Raj had on July 16, 2012 made the first move to improve his strained relations with Uddhav, by visiting the latter at the lilavati hospital, where the latter subsequently underwent an angioplasty for removal of three major blockages in his coronary arteries. Raj had driven back Uddhav to “Matoshri” from lilavati Hospital on that occasion.
Raj had also met ailing Thackeray at”Matoshri” – in the presence of Uddhav – at least on three occasions a fortnight ahead of the Sena patriarch’s death on November 17, 2012.
Similarly, Uddhav had tried to reach out Raj in the run-up to the recent Assembly polls, when the latter fell ill and had to cancel his electioneering for some days. Uddhav had visited Raj’s daughter at Hinduja Hospital on November 2, when the latter was admitted there for injuries sustained in a road mishap.
Raj himself made a disclosure on October 9, six days ahead of the State Assembly polls, that Uddhav had telephoned him to forge a pre-poll alliance between the MNS and Sena, but the initiative did not materialise.
“During the telephonic conversation had with me on September 25 (after the BJP snapped its ties with the Sena), Uddhav had mooted three things: we could hold talks and discuss seat-sharing, avoid criticising each other during the campaigning, and k at post-poll scenario later. I agreed to start with talks about seats..... But the talks did not materialise owing to lack of follow-up on the part of the Sena,” Raj had disclosed.
No wonder that both Raj and Uddhav did not speak against each other at their election rallies.The presence of Raj at the “Smriti Sthal” on the occasion of the second death of late Thackeray is the result of a thaw in their strained relations witnessed in recent months.