BMC polls: Battle for Mumbai to decide the fate of Thackerays

From Balasaheb Thackeray onward, the family has positioned itself as the voice of the city’s Marathi-speaking middle class, shaping Mumbai’s street politics, cultural identity and civic discourse

Mumbai: The Thackeray family’s relationship with Mumbai is deep, emotive and intensely social and political. The Thackerays are inseparable from Mumbai — Urbs Prima in Indis or the first city of India and the country’s financial powerhouse.

From Balasaheb Thackeray onward, the family positioned itself as the voice of the city’s Marathi-speaking middle class, shaping Mumbai’s street politics, cultural identity and civic discourse. The bustling metropolis has been the political base of the Thackerays, and much of their strength has flowed from the city.

The Shiv Sena’s rise was intertwined with Mumbai’s mills, malls, chawls and shifting power structures, especially the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), India’s richest civic body. 

From 1997 to 2022, the undivided Shiv Sena controlled the BMC for nearly a quarter of a century. However, after the party split in June–July 2022, Maharashtra’s political landscape underwent a dramatic transformation.

The year 2026 is especially significant for the Thackeray family, marking the birth centenary of Balasaheb Thackeray (January 23, 1926 – November 17, 2012) and the 60th foundation year of the Shiv Sena (June 19, 1966).

While the “original” Shiv Sena has slipped out of the hands of Balasaheb’s son Uddhav Thackeray — now chief of the Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) — he has his once-estranged cousin Raj Thackeray, founder-president of the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS), by his side.

The central question is whether the Shiv Sena (UBT)–MNS combine, with Sharad Pawar-led NCP (SP) joining forces, can take on the BJP spearheaded by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and his deputy, and the now Shiv Sena chief leader, Eknath Shinde. To ally with Raj in Mumbai, Uddhav had to step out of the Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi–INDIA bloc after the Congress decided to go it alone, citing reservations over Raj’s stand on migrants and Muslims.

Subsequently, the Congress tied up with Prakash Ambedkar-led Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi and Mahadev Jankar-led Rashtriya Samaj Paksha, making the contest multi-cornered. Parties such as the Aam Aadmi Party, Samajwadi Party and Asaduddin Owaisi-led AIMIM are contesting separately, while the Ajit Pawar-led NCP, part of the BJP-led Mahayuti, is also in the fray independently.

“For the Thackerays, this is a crucial election. The BMC polls will, in many ways, decide their political fate. The cousins have come together after 20 years, but the alliance has both pluses and minuses. The Shiv Sena derived its strength from Mumbai. With Balasaheb no longer around, this is the most challenging election for Uddhav and Raj after the debacle in the 2024 Vidhan Sabha elections,” said veteran political analyst Prakash Akolkar, author of the first biography of the Shiv Sena.

Rajya Sabha member Sanjay Raut, a close aide of Uddhav, said: “Uddhav ji and Raj saheb have come together to stay together — this is what the people of Maharashtra wanted.” 

Raut, a journalist-politician, played a key role in the Thackeray reunification.

Joint rallies

At their joint rallies, Uddhav and Raj have raised concerns over the Adani Group’s growing influence, alleged a Gujarati takeover of Mumbai and the larger Mumbai metropolitan region, opposed attempts to impose Hindi in Maharashtra, and revived emotive slogans such as “uthao lungi, bajao pungi”. 

They have also targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Fadnavis.

The cousins have sought to frame the contest around claims that the BJP is attempting to “separate Mumbai from Maharashtra”, revive debates over the city’s identity, and undermine Marathi asmita, Marathi bhasha and the Marathi manoos.

“This election could be the last for the Marathi manoos. If you do not come together now, you will be finished,” Raj warned at his rallies. Uddhav, a former Chief Minister, echoed the sentiment, alleging attempts to detach Mumbai from Maharashtra.

Fadnavis countered the narrative, saying: “This is not the last election for the Marathi people. It is not about the survival of the Marathi manoos, but about the political survival of the Thackerays.”

Uddhav and Raj, along with their sons Aaditya and Amit, respectively, have campaigned extensively on issues concerning Marathi identity. 

Raj’s speeches, in particular, have drawn attention for sharp remarks against the alleged imposition of Hindi and migration-related anxieties. And so was the speech of Aaditya, a former Minister,  in the historic Shivaji Park, during which he slammed the BJP. 

Raj also criticised Tamil Nadu BJP vice president K. Annamalai for his remark that “Bombay is not a Maharashtra city but an international city”, deriding him as “rasmalai”, while Uddhav referred to him as “kalai”.

Charge against BJP

The cousins further accused the BJP of seeking to “annex Mumbai to Gujarat”, citing projects such as the Wadhawan port, the proposed airport in Palghar district and the Mumbai–Ahmedabad bullet train. 

Referring to the Samyukta Maharashtra movement, Uddhav reminded audiences that 107 people were martyred for Mumbai’s inclusion in Maharashtra. Uddhav and Raj's grandfather and the legendary social reformer Prabodhankar Thackeray was one of the pillars of the movement. 

“Mumbai is an integral part of Maharashtra...the Thackerays' narrative that Mumbai will be separated from Maharashtra is not going to work,” said Shiv Sena deputy leader and spokesperson Krishna Hegde, a former Mumbai MLA.