Uddhav Thackeray camp ties up with CPI even as CM Shinde lambasts 'compromise' on Hindutva

In an astonishing turn of events, Uddhav Thackeray's Shiv Sena faction joined hands with CPI which was once its fierce political opponent in Mumbai. The murder of CPI MLA Krishna Desai in 1970 not only paved the way for Shiv Sena's entry into the Legislative Assembly but also resulted in the eventual dominance of the party in central Mumbai. CPI leaders Prakash Reddy, Milind Ranade and others met Thackeray at his ‘Matoshree’ residence on Wednesday and pledged their support to Thackeray for the bypoll to the Andheri East Assembly seat. 

This also assumes significance at a juncture when Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde has accused him of compromising on Hindutva, an ideology vociferously opposed by the Left. Meanwhile, Mahatma Gandhi's great-grandson Tushar Gandhi also expressed solidarity with the ex-Maharashtra CM's Shiv Sena faction. Earlier, MVA allies NCP and Congress announced their decision to back Thackeray's candidate for the by-election. The ex-Maharashtra CM's camp will use the 'Flaming Torch' election symbol in the bypoll.

Crucial bypoll amid Shiv Sena split

Even as Eknath Shinde and Uddhav Thackeray vie for control of Shiv Sena, the Election Commission announced the bypoll to the Andheri East Assembly seat. This seat fell vacant in May after the untimely demise of Shiv Sena's Ramesh Latke who has been winning here since 2014. While the election will be held on November 3, the counting of votes is scheduled for November 6. This will mark the first occasion when Uddhav Thackeray's Shiv Sena and the Eknath Shinde-BJP combine will contest against each other at the Assembly level since the collapse of the MVA government. 

Reportedly, the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena faction is likely to field Ramesh Latke's wife Rutuja for the bypoll. On the other hand, BJP hinted that Murji Patel will be the joint candidate of the ruling alliance. Taking to Twitter, Mumbai BJP chief Ashish Shelar commented, "On the occasion of Andheri East Assembly by-election, Election Central Office was inaugurated today at Andheri East. It was seen that BJP and Shinde group alliance candidate Murjibhai Patel had a lot of support from the locals". The result of this bypoll also might have a bearing on the upcoming Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation polls.