The Story of the Raj-Udhav Rift

The Story of the Raj-Udhav Rift

The rift between Raj and Udhhav came to climatic junction on Sunday December 18 in Shivaji Park, Mumbai. Returning to Mumbai after a tour of Nasik, Raj addressed his supporters and announced his resignation, but said he did not wish to leave the Shiv Sena, which he subsequently later went to Quit and is now in the process of starting his own party. Breaking his silence after sending a letter to Bal Thackeray objecting to the style of functioning of Udhav, Raj said he resigned from the posts as he does not wish to dance to the tune of a 'coterie of petty clerks' who do not know politics. Raj said the Sena chief was like God to him and would continue to remain so. "But am not ready to accept the coterie of priests who treat the temple as their own and dictate terms," he said. He added that he did not mean to embarrass anybody, not least the Sena chief.Raj, who had shot off a letter to Bal Thackeray questioning Uddhav’s leadership, said his decision to resign was taken after giving a due thought and he did not wish to share the misdeeds of the party leaders. "I have faced enough humiliation so far and cannot work in this environment," he said. Raj said that by raising his voice, he did not aim to grab a place of prominence within the party. "In fact it was me who proposed Uddhav’s name when the issue of executive president came up," Raj said adding, "It seems to me now that I shot myself in the foot. "He alleged his supporters were selectively victimised by the coterie controlling the party when it came to nominations for party posts or elections. "It happened to the point that I stopped recommending any names, for I was sure the party leaders would drop the name," Raj said. "The coterie has taken a supari (contract) to finish off the Sena and feed misleading information to the Sena chief from time to time," Raj alleged By his resignation Raj, has now put to end the years of simmering tension that had existed among the two cousin. Raj's action has only verified the suspicion that both Raj and Uddhav cannot agree anything related to politics. With his resignation Raj has only now decided to come out with his feeling, openly revolted against his cousin's Uddhav's leadership and questioned Sena executive president and cousin Uddhav's credential’s as a leader, while protesting his being 'sidelined' by the latter's coterie. Addressing a meeting of supporters, Raj said he was not aiming for the presidentship, adding that it was he who had put forward Uddhav's name for the post to begin with. Raj was born on June 14, 1968 to the late Shrikant Thackeray, Bal Thackeray's younger brother. Inspired by his uncle, he took to drawing cartoons and went on to study at Mumbai's J J School of Applied Arts. He too has won respect for his art, and specialises in political caricatures. What people noticed a long time ago was Raj's uncanny resemblance to his uncle. Apart from their interest in art, they exert the same charisma and share the same political ambitions. Even the way Raj addresses a crowd - bursting into what locals call 'Thackeray' every now and then - is an echo of the senior Sena leader's past. Raj's emergence in the political sphere first came to the fore when Sena leader Chhagan Bhujbal quit the party in 1992. Hurt by the move, and that of others who defected, Bal Thackeray began inducting family members to the Sena. Almost overnight, Uddhav and Raj became new youth leaders. It was a move that upset many senior Sena leaders, and the press also began questioning what it referred to as the clan's 'dynastic ambitions'. To counter the criticism, Bal Thackeray announced that he would resign from the Sena in July that year. Shiv Sainiks everywhere were shocked. They pleaded with their leader to reconsider. When he eventually did, Bal Thackeray was stronger than ever. His decision to bring in family was never questioned again. Raj Thackeray's star rose quickly. He was popular. He had the same Thackeray fire. And he was respected as a leader. Things began to go wrong towards the latter half of the 90s, when his name cropped up in controversies like the Ramesh Kini murder and the Michael Jackson concert to raise funds for the failed Shiv Udyog Sena.

Wisely, Raj took the backseat. He maintained a low profile, gradually winning back the trust of party workers. His mass base began to grow bigger. In time, he became the Sena's star campaigner. All controversies were buried in the past. In December 2002, Bal Thackeray convinced Raj of the need to accept Uddhav as party leader. A month later, Raj himself proposed Uddhav's name for the post. Years passed with differences between the two simmering constantly. There were frequent clashes, but none were openly antagonistic. Then, in September 2004, Raj said he was not averse to becoming the chief minister of Maharashtra. He hinted at the possibility of joining electoral politics in the future, even though he didn't contest elections that year. By now, the Sena had begun to take sides. Hardliners had begun gravitating towards Raj. Moderates moved towards Uddhav. Battle lines were being drawn. Interestingly, Bal Thackeray and his nephew share a fondness for - of all people - German dictator Adolf Hitler. Raj has, in the past, said that there are a few who can rival Hitler's abilities when it comes to organisational skills. "Hitler had everything," he has told reporters. "The one thing he did not have was the ambition to conquer the world." He then added, "you can draw whatever conclusions you want from my remarks. "For now, all eyes are on the Shiv Sena's next move. Bal Thackeray has responded to Raj's decision to quit with an editorial in the party mouthpiece Saamna that reads: Swatahala Himalaya Samajnaryansathi (For those who consider themselves the Himalayas). 'Shiv Sena is the Himalayas, which rose on the shoulders of loyal Shiv Sainiks, and everyone in it has grown up in its shadow,' the editorial says. 'Those standing in its shadow should not think they are bigger.' No one knows what Raj Thackeray will do next.

How the Media Split it Wide Open!!!

· The three important incident which sealed the split

Differences crop up

The differences between Uddhav and Raj came out in public after the 1999 Assembly elections that saw the return of the Congress-NCP coalition to power. Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray and Uddhav, supported by senior leaders, held Narayan Rane responsible for the debacle. Raj was upset.

Rift widens

The rift widened as Raj sensed that his hand-picked shaka pramukhs were systematically being shown the doors ever since Thackeray handed over the party administration to Uddhav.

Raj protests

In 2002 BMC elections, Raj found his supporters replaced by Uddhav's loyalists. He protested.

Uddhav's ticket distribution

Uddhav's ticket distribution for the 2004 assembly elections irked Raj. He accused Uddhav of sidelining his candidates. Raj felt left out of the process to select candidates for the 2004 Lok Sabha polls.

Rane expulsion upsets Raj

Raj was terribly upset with Uddhav's decision to expel Narayan Rane from the party in July 2005.

An eventful day

Parshuram Uparkar, who was Sena's candidate for the Malvan assembly by-poll, resigned as vice-president of the Bharatiya Vidyarthi Sena.

Kiran Pawaskar, Dagdu Sakpal, Sada Sarvankar, Subhash Desai, Manohar Joshi, Sanjay Raut were given heavy police protection at their residences and offices. Also security outside Raj and Uddhav's residences was tightened.

Subhash Desai was intimidated by Raj's followers. He kept himself away from the media. Manohar Joshi, too, was unreachable for a long time.

Effigy of Subhash Desai was allegedly burnt by Raj's supporters at Goregaon.

Lower cadre of the Shiv Sena is confused. Sena activist are gathering at different shakhas throughout the city.

The coverage of the Incident by the Indian Media

· The Local and the regional Marathi language media was the forefront of the coverage. Although many national level newspapers also gave importance to this news as it concerned a party which is widely considered the most militant of the parties in India. And also because this party has been able to be in the news for many reasons and is mostly remembered for the wrong reasons. The tension between Raj and Udhav has always been in the news in the regional press and regional media large. But the media interest of the Medias sky rocketed when Raj Thackeray decided to openly revolt against the Shiv Sena, the party that he has grown up in and which has given him everything. But what the media was attracted to be that, raj is now leaving the party which is led by the person that Raj admires the most and holds the respect that is only deserved for god. On the day when Raj Thackeray announced the split from the party the entire media band wagon including local, national and had an international flavour attached to it. The Shivaji Park was converted into a fortress by the media. For the media it a real life soap opera being played out for the general public.

· This conflict where news is made or created every second and it is very necessary to be one step ahead of the news. As in any other conflict there are always profit to be made and an enduring impact to be created. One opportunity lost could mean the difference between disaster or godsend if handled properly by the news managers of the world i.e. the 'Media Behemoth’.

· The news entrants like the DNA and Hindustan Times made a good effort at covering the news. While the old hands like the 'The Times of India' and 'The Indian Express' were at the forefront of covering the news. The split made front news headlines in these newspapers although in the local editions.

· The time allotted to the coverage of the at the climax are certainly more in the regional media. But it was also given appreciable covered by the National and the English press.

· The print as well as the broadcast media covered the issue with the same zeal and encouragement. While it has to be said that the Hindi and the Marathi language press went in in-depth reporting and carried the issue on the front pages much longer than the regional press. It was a logical step as it is more of a regional issue and the impact of this issue is felt more at the regional level. The regional press which are wroth a mention, are 'Sahara Samay', Zee Network' with it's regional presence and also popular regional eveninger 'Mahanagar' and 'Sakal', 'Loksatta', 'Sandhyakaal',' Aaj tak', 'Maharashtra Times’,’Loksatta’.It'. It also made cover page news in major news magazine like,'Outlook'.'India Today’,’ The Week’. But the best-balanced coverage was by the south Indian major newspaper 'The Hindu' and 'Front Line’. The coverage also received a lot of attention on the net always. The information spread like wild fire over the Internet and was a favourite among all the blog groups. The major coverage was provided by, Rediff and India Times and also by all the online representative of the major media players tried to make the most of the growing popularity of the press.