By Shiv! It's now beedi vs vada-pav

MUMBAI: The battle over the great warrior king Chhatrapati Shivaji has attained new levels of ludicrity in state politics.

All major political parties are weilding swords against each other to display their reverence to Shivaji. Shiv Sena executive president Uddhav Thackeray took the lead when he proudly claimed his party's decision to rename the humble vada-pav as Shiv vada-pav to be ahead in the race with Raj Thackeray. To counter the Sena strategy, the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) questioned the wisdom of belittling the Maratha king by associating him with a pav (bread).
 
Deputy chief minister RR Patil, of NCP, said, "We will never allow anybody to use Shivaji's name for vada pav. It is an insult to Shivaji."

Now, the BJP — which on matters concerning its ally does not react till asked to — has sprung up in defence of the Shiv Sena, pointing out that the Congress and the NCP have no right to question the Sena as they have thrived in politics, using only symbols in the past.

Even as the BJP leaders wonder the compulsion behind Sena's move to drag Shivaji in the business of vada-pav, the party has derided the Congress (and its offshoot NCP) for capitalising on symbols from Gandhi topi to naming everything from slums to airports after the late Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi.

BJP general secretary Vinod Tawde said, “I fail to understand why NCP and Patil are not reacting to Shivaji beedi and Sambhaji beedi. They have no problems with beedis but feel offended with Shiv vada pav.” Tawde said, “It is alright if Sena has a scheme in mind to generate employment and naming it after Chhatrapati Shivaji. In my opinion, vada pav does not require a new name.”

Another BJP leader Madhav Bhandari said, “Vada pav already has its distinct Mumbai identity. You also associate it with Shiv Sena in some context. What more can you achieve by renaming it after Shivaji?”

The politics of renaming is not a new phenomenon to state politicians. The state witnessed protests and counter-rallies when the then chief minister Sharad Pawar decided to rename Marathwada University in Aurangabad after BR Ambedkar.
Interestingly, the Sena which is now talking of Bhim Shakti-Shiv Shakti had then agitated against the renaming.

The BJP leader late Pramod Mahajan took the lead in NDA government at the Centre to rename Mumbai Airport as Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport.

Congress leader Anand Gadgil feels the politics of renaming is generally to express reverence for a great leader. But anointing vada pav after Shivaji is lowering the status of the great king, he said.

 "Renaming has its limited effect. It cannot alter your electoral fortunes or win over public votes. The GenNext wants to know what politicians are doing for the development of the state," Gadgil said.