Down to single MLA, Raj Thackeray’s MNS leans back on its stand on migrants

Severely depleted strength from 13 MLAs in 2009; party also lost its local leaders in Mumbai, Nashik and Pune to other parties

With the Brihanmumbai Muncipal Corporation polls coming up and the Assembly and General elections lined up for next year, the MNS is once again reasserting itself. (Express file photo by Arul Horizon)

Written by: Shubhangi Khapre

5 min readMumbaiJun 13, 2023 07:45 PM IST First published on: Jun 13, 2023 at 01:12 PM IST

As it struggles to regain lost ground, the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) led by Raj Thackeray seems to have reverted back to anti-migrant rhetoric ahead of the Mumbai corporation elections scheduled for later this year.

On Sunday, speaking at the fifth foundation of his party’s disaster management wing in Dadar, Raj held migrants responsible for bad drains and rivers in Mumbai by building “illegal colonies”.

“There is a limit to how many migrants should come to a city. After all, the influx of migrants leads to overburdened infrastructure. These migrants built illegal colonies along the drains and river banks. These lead to poor drain and river management. It leads to overflowing drains, choked drains.”

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An MNS general secretary, who requested anonymity, told The Indian Express that Raj’s statements were “consistent with MNS policies and politics”.

“What Raj Thackeray said was nothing but facts. The stress on Mumbai infrastructure is leading to poor civic amenities, including poor drainage system and polluted rivers. There is no denying the fact that encroachment along drains and river banks in Mumbai and suburbs is a reality. Those encroaching are migrants. They are not locals.”

In the 2009 Assembly elections, three years after it was formed, the MNS won 13 MLAs and was also considered a strong voice in the state Assembly. Its tally kept dropping in subsequent polls. The party managed to win just one seat in the 2019 elections.

Owing to its strong cadre, the party also had an influence at the local level. It won six corporators in the 2017 BMC polls. However, barring one, all of them joined the (then combined) Shiv Sena led by Uddhav Thackeray. The MNS had also emerged as a strong force in Nashik and Pune but lost its local leaders to other parties.

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With the BrihanMumbai Muncipal Corporation polls coming up and the Assembly and General elections lined up for next year, the MNS is once again reasserting itself.

Shiv Sena (UBT), Congress, and NCP announced they would fight the local body polls together under the Maha Vikas Aghadi banner. But the BJP, which is contesting with Chief Minister Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena, seems to be looking to bring MNS on its side. Officially, the BJP-MNS alliance talks have been kept under wraps, with both sides exercising caution not to make it public unless they finalise their pact.

So, it is no surprise then that the comments on migrants are being seen as an MNS tactic to hit out at the Shiv Sena that has controlled the BMC for 25 years and also the North Indian leaders within the Congress who are considered to be giving political patronage to migrants.

The MNS was formed in 2005, when Raj walked out of (then combined) Shiv Sena following differences with his cousin Uddhav. The party aggressively took on what they called local issues and raised “concerns about the Marathi Manoos and Marathi Asmita ( pride of Maharashtra)”. Raj himself stirred controversy several times with his views on migrants. Attacks on migrant stalls and rickshaw drivers by MNS workers were also in the news. Such instances stopped in the last decade, but Raj continued to speak sharply against migrants.

During the Covid-19 pandemic, for example, Raj held migrant workers responsible for the spread of virus.

“These workers come from states where there are no basic facilities to carry out Covid test. But Maharashtra being the leading industrial state and economic capital of the country draws a huge number of outsiders for work and livelihood, ” Raj had then said.

In February 2008, MNS workers clashed with those from the Samajwadi Party when the latter were going to a rally. Defending his party, Raj jad then said the MNS “would not tolerate the dadagiri of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar migrants”.

Raj is also seen as espousing Hindutva rhetoric.

In May 2022, Raj launched a campaign against loudspeakers in mosques and kept up the heat on the MVA government in power at the time. The pressure from the MNS made the government prescribe noise regulations in all places of worship including mosques and temples. Raj had earlier raised objections about an “illegal structure” near the Mahim dargah in Mumbai, warning the BMC to demolish it within 48 hours.