Uddhav and Raj Thackeray, estranged cousins and leaders of Shiv Sena (UBT) and MNS respectively, will share a public stage after two decades to celebrate the Maharashtra government's decision to roll back the three-language policy in primary schools.
The Maharashtra government has reversed its decision to make Hindi a mandatory third language in schools after facing widespread opposition. The move comes after the state's language consultation committee urged the Chief Minister to revoke the decision. The government will now issue a revised order making Hindi learning voluntary. The decision had been met with criticism from various quarters, including opposition parties and the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena, which had called for a protest against the move.
Scenes from polling stations in Mumbai which voted in the Lok Sabha election on Monday, May 20, 2024.
A day before his film Jatt released, Sunny Deol made a comment, surprising those who are so used to his cinematic patriotic image and his Pakistan-bashing movies.
Against the backdrop the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena's demand to remove loudspeakers from mosques, the Maharashtra director general of police on Tuesday instructed the officials to enforce the law and Supreme Court's guidelines on the issue strictly.
He, however, made it clear that his party candidates, as and when they contest elections, will do so only on MNS symbol 'railway engine'.
The MNS joining the BJP-led alliance in Maharashtra could help it with a 'Thackeray versus Thackeray' narrative, fielding Raj Thackeray, an articulate speaker, to take on his cousin Uddhav Thackeray.
The event marked Coach Achrekar's birth anniversary.
The Shiv Sena faction led by Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has nominated Rajya Sabha MP Milind Deora from Worli for the upcoming assembly elections.
Amid parties accusing rivals of promoting dynastic politics, the November 20 Maharashtra assembly polls will see brothers, cousins and father-children in the fray, with members of the same family taking on each other in some seats.
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray on Tuesday held a meeting of his party leaders from Mumbai, Thane, Nashik and other divisions regarding his visit to Ayodhya in June.
Senior RSS leader Suresh Bhaiyyaji Joshi's call to drop the Aurangzeb tomb controversy challenges decades of communal rhetoric in Maharashtra, igniting hopes for unity and a balanced historical narrative.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis warned against violence and linguistic chauvinism related to the Marathi language, emphasizing constructive promotion and legal action against those taking the law into their own hands.
Many office-bearers of the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) have resigned in protest after their party chief Raj Thackeray declared support to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP-led Mahayuti alliance in the state.
'It was not our intention to hurt anyone's sentiments.'
'Like me there are crores of Marathi people in the state hoping for this miracle to work.'
Fadnavis questioned the people's perception of Indian languages and English.
Maharashtra Home Minister Dilip Walse Patil on Monday said MNS chief Raj Thackeray's speech in Aurangabad, wherein he remained firm on the May 3 deadline for removal of loudspeakers from mosques, was aimed at "creating a divide in society", and hinted at action against him.
Facing mounting opposition to the introduction of Hindi language in Maharashtra schools from classes 1 to 5, the state cabinet on Sunday decided to withdraw two GRs (government orders) on the implementation of the three-language policy.
Manoj Jarange's protest for Maratha quota at Mumbai's Azad Maidan enters its third day. Jarange is demanding 10% quota for Marathas and recognition as Kunbis. Maharashtra ministers suggest the community avail the existing EWS quota.
MNS chief Raj Thackeray alleges the state government's three-language formula is a precursor to separating Mumbai from Maharashtra, speaking at a rally with Uddhav Thackeray.
Shinde was speaking in the presence of Union Home Minister Ami Shah at the inauguration ceremony of the 'Jairaj Sports and Convention Centre' built by the Shree Poona Gujarati Bandhu Samaj in Pune's Kondhwa.
Fadnavis' announcement comes at a time when a section of Bharatiya Janata Party in Kalyan has expressed reservations against fielding Shrikant Shinde, the sitting MP from Shiv Sena.
The strike has been called by the Maharashtra Navnirman Vahtuk Sena, the transport wing of the Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena, which claims that several drivers of these cabs are not able to cover costs due to the falling business.
Uddhav Thackeray criticized BJP MP Nishikant Dubey for his controversial remarks amid the Marathi-Hindi language row, accusing him of trying to divide people and disturb harmony.
Speculations about a rapprochement between Uddhav Thackeray and his estranged cousin Raj Thackeray are gathering steam, but leaders of the Shiv Sena (UBT) and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) acknowledge that personal ties and organisational synergy are significant hurdles that need to be overcome. While both parties have expressed a willingness to put aside "trivial issues" and unite, the prospect of a reunion is complex, involving family dynamics, ideological differences, and the potential for internal conflicts. The reunion buzz has come at a time when both parties are experiencing a political nadir, with the Sena (UBT) winning 20 seats and the MNS drawing a blank in the 2024 assembly polls. The prospect of the two cousins coming together has enthused supporters of both parties, but it might not be the case with a section of cadres and party leaders. Key concerns include seat-sharing agreements, potential conflicts in areas with strong bases for both parties, and ideological differences.
Raising slogans against MNS chief Raj Thackeray, the activists of the Rashtravadi Shiv Sena came to the Maharashtra Sadan and damaged its reception counter. The activists said they were protesting against the attacks on north Indians by MNS activists in Maharashtra.
The Bharatiya Janata Party-led Mahayuti alliance on Saturday retained power in Maharashtra, pocketing a whopping 230 of the 288 assembly seats, as the Congress-led Maha Vikas Aghadi's dream of wresting power fizzled, with the opposition combine managing to garner just 50 seats.
Ruling out merger with the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray Tuesday said he had no intention of aligning with anybody.
Maharashtra Home Department has proposed the transfer of Mumbai Police Commissioner Arup Patnaik who is facing flak over handling of the August 11 violence at Azad Maidan.
Thackeray said there was no certainty that people will vote for the ruling alliance even after schemes like the Ladki Bahin Yojana.
Shiv Sena supremo Bal Thackeray is back, in an implicit admission that he erred in his political judgement. A few years ago, Thackeray had annointed his son Uddhav as the party's executive president bypassing his cousin Raj, who went on to form the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS). Incidentally, the MNS spoiled the prospects of the Shiv Sena in the recent Maharashtra Assembly elections.
Activists of the Swarajya Sanghatana on Wednesday smeared black paint on the signboard of Karnataka Bank at its branch in Nashik city of Maharashtra amid a simmering border dispute between the two states.
Reacting to Congress MP Sanjay Nirupam's dare to the Thackerays to move around without security, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray blamed Shiv Sena for "making Nirupam big".
"We know what they (MNS) are doing. They do not have any more real issues to take to the people and that is why they are resorting to such acts," Uddhav told reporters.
Maharashtra Chief Minster Ashok Chavan on Thursday condemned Uddhav and Raj Thackeray for 'touching a new low' in politics with their comments on All India Congress Committee general secretary Rahul Gandhi. "Nowhere in Indian politics has such a low level of personal allegations been witnessed. I condemn their (Uddhav and Raj Thackeray) utterances," said Chavan.
The Haryana victory will be a morale booster for the Bharatiya Janata Party and increase its bargaining power in the Mahayuti's seat-sharing talks for the upcoming Maharashtra assembly elections, according to political analysts.
Close on the heels of the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena demanding prime time slots for Marathi movies in theatres, the Shiv Sena claimed on Tuesday that the party has been fighting for the cause since long as it had filed a petition in the court for at least 500 shows for such movies every year.
The Raj Thackeray-led MNS senses an opportunity after the Shiv Sena-UBT candidate's lead fell to less than 7,000 votes in the Worli assembly segment during the recent Lok Sabha polls.
Taking the Shiv Sena and the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena head-on, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh on Sunday said that it has asked its volunteers to protect north Indians in Maharashtra and prevent the spread of anti-Hindi feelings. "The Sangh Parivar has asked its volunteers in Maharashtra to try and prevent the spread of anti-north Indian and anti-Hindi feelings," said RSS leader Ram Madhav.He said the RSS was opposed to discrimination on the basis of language.
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