Mumbai : Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray visited Matoshree, the residence of the Thackeray family in Mumbai, on Sunday to meet his cousin and Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Uddhav Thackeray on his birthday. The meeting at Matoshree is being viewed as a possible signal of easing tensions and improving relations between the cousins.
While Raj had last formally visited Matoshri in 2012 during the final days of Balasaheb Thackeray, he had made a brief visit in January 2019 to invite Uddhav and his family to his son Amit Thackeray’s wedding. Earlier this month, the cousins shared a political stage for the first time in 20 years, coming together over the issue of Marathi identity and opposition to the “imposition” of Hindi.
At the event, Raj Thackeray remarked that Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had done what even Balasaheb Thackeray couldn’t, bringing him and Uddhav together. Referring to the upcoming elections in 29 municipal corporations, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Uddhav Thackeray declared that he and Raj would take control of the Mumbai civic body and Maharashtra.
During the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena’s three-day conclave in Igatpuri, Nashik district, Raj Thackeray told members that any decision regarding a possible alliance with Shiv Sena (UBT) would be taken at an appropriate time. Raj Thackeray parted ways with Shiv Sena in 2006 to form the MNS. Since then, political and personal distance between the two sides had grown, with few direct interactions over the years.
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