Mumbai: A crucial turning point in the political history of Maharashtra. The Election Commission has given an official answer to the question of who is the real Shiv Sena in the split Shiv Sena.
The commission’s announcement came after the Shiv Sena faction led by Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde was given the party’s symbol of bow and arrow. With this, Uddhav Thackeray, who fought for the symbol, suffered a heavy blow. The Election Commission’s decision to declare the Shinde faction as the original Shiv Sena has come at the end of a long legal battle.
It was the Shinde faction that emerged from the Shiv Sena that destroyed the Mahavikas Aghadi coalition led by the Uddhav faction. Uddhav maintained that they were following the ideals of Balasaheb Thackeray, but with the majority of Shiv Sena members joining the Shinde faction, it became clear which faction was the real Shiv Sena. However, in the eyes of the law, Uddha and Shinde stood as two factions of the Shiv Sena.
Finally, with the by-elections approaching, both sides laid claim to Shiv Sena’s symbol. The commission then froze the original Shiv Sena’s symbol of the bow and arrow and granted the sword and shield to the Shinde faction and the burning torch to the Uddhav faction. Shinde’s side was always able to meet the criteria set by the commission. It is estimated that this is the reason why Eknath Shinde won after the fight for the real Shiv Sena.