Mumbai: Shiv Sena (UBT) gears up for Dussehra rally at iconic Shivaji Park

Uddhav Thackeray. File Pic

As the country is steeped in Dussehra celebrations today, Shiv Sena (UBT) is all geared up to hold its annual Dussehra rally at the iconic Shivaji Park in Maharashtra's Mumbai, reported news agency PTI.

Meanwhile, the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena will organise its Dussehra rally at Mumbai's Azad Maidan.

The Shiv Sena (UBT) and the Chief Minister Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena will once again indulge in a show of strength with their Dussehra rallies in Mumbai on Tuesday.

The two rallies also assume significance as Lok Sabha elections are just a few months away, while civic polls in several cities, including Mumbai, are pending since early 2022.

In the run-up to the rallies, the Thackeray faction has released several video clips of Bal Thackeray's speeches, especially those highlighting action that needs to be taken against defectors. These have been widely shared by Shiv Sena (UBT) workers.

Earlier this month, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde announced that the annual Dussehra rally will be organised at Azad Maidan instead of Shivaji Park.

This cleared the path for the Uddhav-led Shiv Sena to hold the annual rally at Shivaji Park.

Shiv Sena (Shinde group) and Shiv Sena (UBT), last year, locked horns over organising the annual Dussehra rally at Shivaji Park, where the party has been holding the rally since 1966, indicating the significance of this venue for both of them, reported ANI.

However, the Bombay High Court had ruled in favour of the Shiv Sena (UBT) and allowed the Uddhav Thackeray faction to hold the Dussehra rally at Shivaji Park, reported ANI.

This came after the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) refused to give permission to the two factions to hold the rally, based on the local police report, which said that the event may cause law and order issues in the area, reported ANI.

The event is significant as Sena is now divided into two factions and the rally was not held in 2020 and 2021 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Last year, Eknath Shinde led a group of Sena MLAs against the Maha Vikas Aghadi government, resulting in MVA losing its majority in the state. This also led Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray to step down as CM ahead of a floor test.

The new Eknath Shinde-led government in Maharashtra won the floor test by a 164-99 margin, proving his government's majority and cementing his position as chief minister of the state. 164 votes were polled in favour of Shinde, while 99 votes were polled against the newly formed BJP-Shinde camp coalition.

(With inputs from PTI and ANI)