After the Shiv Sena split and the establishment of the Shinde-Fadnavis government, Uddhav will be put to the test in the Andheri by-election

The Shinde camp-BJP coalition and the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena will face off in the forthcoming November 3 by-election for the Andheri East assembly seat following the fall of the Maha Vikas Aghadi government following the revolt led by Eknath Shinde. Shinde-Fadnavis then formed the administration. It will be a challenge for Uddhav, who is currently working to revive the party following the Shinde-led uprising to win the by-election that became necessary after Shiv Sena's sitting lawmaker Ramesh Latke passed away suddenly.

Rutuja Latke, a Shiv Sena candidate, is anticipated.

 

Interestingly, despite the continuing legal dispute over the election's bow and arrow symbol, the Shinde camp is eager to stake its claim to being the Shiv Sena's seat. However, the BJP has internally solidified a plan to select Murji Patel, a former corporator for the Mumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC). Shiv Sena intends to take advantage of the sympathy that has been generated by Latke's passing. They also have plans to canvass voters while portraying Eknath Shinde and the other 39 as traitors who joined up with the BJP in order to gain power. By stepping up party organisation at the booth level by setting up shakhas and vibhags on the active mode, Uddhav would personally oversee poll administration.

 

The BJP, on the other hand, wants to use the Shiv Sena's split to its advantage while putting up a show of togetherness with its new ally, the Shinde camp. Aside from extolling the virtues of a "Double Engine" government, the BJP is prepared to use the Hindutva platform to win over Marathi Manoos and non-Marathi speaking voters. With an eye on the impending BMC elections, the Shinde camp will be forced to help BJP in order to strengthen its position in the Andheri East constituency. In the meantime, the Shinde camp will have a difficult time persuading the BJP that its nominee should run on the BJP ticket, which the latter may find objectionable.

 

Shiv Sena and the BJP fought the 2019 assembly elections jointly, however, their alliance later broke down. Latke won, while Patel, who ran as an independent after the Shiv Sena was given the seat as part of a seat-sharing arrangement, received 45,808 votes. Latke, however, prevailed over Patel by a 16,965-vote edge. Because Latke was close to Shinde, the Shinde camp believed that it should be given a seat.

 

 

Image Courtesy: Twitter @themaktab