Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray’s studied silence on Mukesh Ambani’s statement all Indians are welcome to Mumbai has everybody wondering why the “champion” of Marathi manoos has gone on the back foot.
Ambani made the statement at the London School of Economics a couple of days ago, evoking sharp reaction from Sena chief Bal Thackeray. MNS rivals, namely the north Indian forum who are often at the receiving end, are wondering why he is not speaking now.
A senior MNS leader said, “Why should we always react? Did you hear any remarks from Congress, NCP or BJP?” Another MNS leader argued, “Our fight is to give justice to sons of the soil. We don’t have to make hollow statements like the Sena.”
The Shiv Sena’s haste to cash in on the the subject to gain political mileage among the sons of the soils is understandable. By doing so it has landed the MNS at the cross-roads, unable to choose whether it should go against Ambani or join hands with Bal Thackeray.
After its defeat in October 2009 state Assembly polls the Sena has set the target for 2012 BMC elections. It’s a do or die battle for the organisation. Therefore, it has decided to revert to its original Marathi plank that was adopted between 1966-85. The policy reflects in Thackeray’s statement, “Marathis have as much right over Mumbai as you have over the Reliance industries.”
A committee report of the Union finance ministry (2007) submitted to state on transforming Mumbai into an International financial hub states, “Mumbai needs to be seen as a cosmopolitan metropolis that welcomes migrants. That will mean providing a user-friendly visa/resident permit mechanism. It is only with such an ethos that the city can become an international financial hub.”
Insiders in the MNS said, “We don’t want to be seen competing with the Sena. We will have to look at the context in which the statement was delivered by Ambani.” Incidentally, this is the second time Raj (Thackeray) has skirted the issue. Earlier, Sachin Tendulkar’s innocent remark — Mumbai belongs to all — clearly put MNS in a spot.
The buzz in the party was that the MNS chief could not take cudgels against the cricket genius as he happens to be his close friend. Moreover, the MNS chief also realised that bashing Sachin may turn off the people. Now, the MNS is weighing the pros and cons before taking on Ambani. The Sena however is desperate to revive the party has ensured that when it comes to attacking the biggies (like Sachin or Ambani) it promptly fields Bal Thackeray. The party executive president Uddhav stays out of the controversy.
