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Journalism of Courage
Stung by the upset caused by estranged cousin Raj Thackerays Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) in the Shiv Senas strongholds of urban Mumbai and Thane,Shiv Sena executive president Uddhav Thackeray has swiftly shifted focus to shoring up support in these city areas ahead of the Assembly polls due in about four months. He is paying most of his attention to drains ahead of the monsoon,as there are fears of flooding. The reason for this is that the Shiv Sena-BJP combine would face the heat if there is flooding and a breakdown of civic infrastructure in the city,as it is in power in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC),which is responsible for maintaining the infrastructure of the financial capital stretched to the limit during the June-September rains.
Uddhav is periodically reviewing the work on the cleaning and de-silting of the various nallah and waterbodies in the city. On May 19,Uddhav inspected de-silting works at locations like the Kurla- Kalina bridge,Kranti Nagar,and Milan subway,followed by another tour on May 23 to sites in the western suburbs like Dahisar river and Malvani nallah. Uddhav is also planning a meeting with Chief Minister Ashok Chavan to review the pre-monsoon preparedness of the various authorities in the city.
Sena functionaries from the BMC said Uddhav was likely to hold two more such reviews in the eastern suburbs and the city. He (Uddhav) must be feeling that he must get closer to the masses, said a Sena corporator. It is a different matter if nature decides to wreak havoc,but we have to prevent any mistakes on our part, he added.
In the run up to the Lok Sabha polls,the Sena and Uddhav had chosen to focus more on issues in rural areas,and though the results saw a majority of their 11 MPs being elected from the hinterlands,it suffered major reverses in the Mumbai-Thane-Nashik belt due to the MNS. With the state Assembly polls in October right after the monsoons the Sena,which managed to retain power in the BMC for the third successive term,can ill afford public ire resulting from flooding. With a resurgent Congress and the MNS snapping at its heels,this anti-incumbency and perceived non-performance may lead to a further dip in its popularity,political observers say.
