MCA names Wankhede media box after Thackeray

The media box at the Wankhede Stadium has been named after the late Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray. Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) on Tuesday passed a resolution clearing a proposal on the matter that had been pending before MCA for a few months. In the first week of May,Shiv Sena leader Milind Narvekar had written to the MCA reminding them about the proposal.

MCA president Ravi Sawant and joint secretary P V Shetty met Sena president Uddhav Thackeray to inform him of decision. Uddhav expressed his gratitude to the MCA for accepting the Sena’s proposal and honouring Bal Thackeray,who was a great lover of cricket. Uddhav told the MCA officials that Thackeray would follow every domestic and international match closely.

Some political parties had expressed reservations about naming a part of the stadium after Thackeray. However,MCA appears to have taken a unanimous decision. The state government has stayed away from the controversy.

Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee spokesperson Sachin Sawant said,“In this particular case the matter related to MCA alone. It was up to them to take a decision on the proposal.”

Sena leaders have been demanding that several established institutions be named after Thackeray. Initially,some Sena leaders had wanted the Wankhede Stadium itself to be renamed after Thackeray,but they ultimately agreed to the media box in the stadium being named after their leader.

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