Thackeray, Pawar take centre stage in Maharashtra civic polls

Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) Sharad Pawar have taken a centre stage during the run up to the elections to the 10 municipal corporations and 27 zilla parishads slated for February. For Shiv Sena, which was unable to recover from the successive defeats in the assembly elections since 1999 and the recently concluded polls to the 195 municipalities, it is a fight for survival and to keep the morale of rank and file high.

Thackeray, who turned 85 today, has already addressed Shiv Sena office bearers last week  with a call to remain alert and united for party's success. He would also hold election rallies in Mumbai and Thane in a desparate bid to retain supremacy. Thackeray, who has already ruled out any patch up with his estranged nephew and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray, would make emotional appeal to Marathi Manoos to continue support his party and not to MNS in order to avoid division of votes.

On the other hand, Pawar, who is recovering from pneumonia, has taken the elections to the local and civic bodies quite seriously in a bid to consolidate NCP's position across Maharashtra and also widen party's base by accomodating cross sections of the society. Pawar remained present when the saffron Shiv Sena MP Anand Paranjape dropped his intent to join his party. Paranjape's decision to meet Pawar at the state party headquarters in Mumbai has led to a political storm. NCP chief is expected to address few meetings in Mumbai, Thane, Pune.

Incidentally, both Thackeray and Pawar have delegated enough powers to their next of kin though the duo want to be pro-active considering the importance of these elections being considered as "mini assembly" polls in Maharashtra. Thackeray is time and again praising his son and the party executive president Uddhav for working tirelessly in working out election strategy. On the other hand, Pawar revealed that his nephew and state deputy chief ministerAjit Pawar has every potential to become the chief minister. Ajit is travelling extensively and he was the main architect of NCP's victory in the recently concluded elections to the 195 municipalities.

Thackeray in his scathing attack against Congress party said vote for the party means vote for corruption. In the days to come, Thackeray is expected to fire salvos against Congress and NCP.

Similarly, Pawar said the change of rule in the Mumbai civic body with an annual budget of over Rs 21,000 crore was necessary to expedite the development process in India's commercial and financial capital. NCP chief indicated that even though he enjoys a friendship with Thackeray he would not mix it with politics. He justified NCP's decision to strike poll alliance with Congress despite getting mere 58 seats with a sole objective of dislodging the Sena-BJP alliance.