Mumbai: On 18 November, 2012, as members of the Thackeray household carried out the final rites earlier than bidding a last farewell to their patriarch, Shiv Sena supremo Bal Thackeray, his son Uddhav requested a member of the family workers to affix the household.
This was Champa Singh Thapa, generally known as “Balasaheb’s shadow” in celebration circles, who took care of the Sena founder’s each massive and small want.
On Monday, Thapa formally joined the Eknath Shinde-led insurgent faction of the Shiv Sena in Thane, together with one other long-time aide of Bal Thackeray, Moreshwar Raje.
Thapa becoming a member of the Shinde camp is neither a political blow to the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena nor a major political achieve for the insurgent faction.
Nevertheless, it can be crucial optics, as Maharashtra Chief Minister Shinde tries to point out how the individuals who had been closest to Bal Thackeray are selecting his faction over Uddhav’s.
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‘Balasaheb’s shadow’
A Shiv Sena chief from the Thackeray camp who didn’t want to be named informed ThePrint that Thapa had labored for Bal Thackeray for almost 30 years as his private attendant.
“He would maintain Balasaheb’s meals timings, give him his medicines, and get water for him and his guests. He could be always seen with Balasaheb,” he mentioned.
“After Maa Saheb (Bal Thackeray’s spouse Meenatai Thackeray) handed away (in 1995), Thapa would additionally accompany Balasaheb in every single place on his excursions,” he mentioned.
A second Shiv Sena chief from the Thackeray camp mentioned: “Balasaheb had distanced himself from Moreshwar Raje in the previous couple of years of his life. (However) Thapa was once round him on a regular basis, as somebody’s private workers normally is. Balasaheb used to think about everybody round him to be a part of the Shiv Sena household.”
Sources from the Thackeray camp mentioned Thapa, a Nepali, had come to Mumbai in search of work, and Okay.T. Thapa, a former Shiv Sena corporator from Mumbai’s Bhandup suburb, launched him to the Thackeray household.
Champa Singh Thapa continued to stay in Matoshree, the Thackerays’ non-public residence, for a couple of months after Bal Thackeray’s loss of life in 2012. Whereas Thapa was by no means concerned in politics in the middle of his affiliation with the Thackerays, he’s mentioned to have helped in beginning the Shiv Sena’s unit in his dwelling nation, Nepal, sources from the Thackeray camp mentioned.
“I used to take go away for under 15-20 days in a stretch of two years. Solely on uncommon events would I am going on a month-long go away. I used to stand up at 6.30 am, give Saheb his favorite tea, and solely after he went to sleep at night time would I am going to mattress,” Thapa had informed Mid-Day in 2013 in a uncommon interview.
A pacesetter from the Shinde faction informed ThePrint: “Thapa and Shinde saheb had been on good phrases as Shinde saheb used to go to Matoshree continuously as a senior chief of the Shiv Sena. Thapa wasn’t very glad after the formation of the Maha Vikas Aghadi, and had met Shinde saheb a couple of occasions even earlier than he turned CM.”
Uddhav had, submit the 2019 Maharashtra state polls, damaged the Shiv Sena’s long-time partnership with the BJP and fashioned the Maha Vikas Aghadi alliance with the ideologically mismatched Congress and Nationalist Congress Social gathering.
He subsequently turned the chief minister of the state, however was compelled to resign on 29 June this yr after a revolt by Shinde — who had the backing of nearly all of Shiv Sena MLAs — toppled the MVA authorities. A day later, Shinde took over as Maharashtra CM, with the BJP’s Devendra Fadnavis as his deputy.
On Monday, Shinde formally inducted Thapa into his Sena faction by presenting him with a scarf, a bouquet and a saffron sash. Thapa informed reporters that he’d determined to go along with Shinde as a result of he’s “taking Balasaheb’s ideology ahead”.
Shinde mentioned: “Thapa has given his backing to the Shiv Sena that follows Balasaheb’s ideas.”
‘Psychological warfare’
The Shinde-led Shiv Sena faction claims to be the true torchbearer of Bal Thackeray’s ideology, and the inductions ship the message that the folks closest to the senior Thackeray and members of his lineage are acknowledging this.
In July, Bal Thackeray’s daughter-in-law Smita Thackeray, former spouse of Jaidev Thackeray, met Shinde, calling it a courtesy go to. The identical month, Nihar Thackeray, Bal Thackeray’s grandson, met Shinde and pledged help to his faction. Nihar Thackeray is the son of Bal Thackeray’s eldest son, Bindumadhav, who died in 1996 in an accident on the Mumbai-Pune expressway.
“That is nearly like psychological warfare,” political commentator Hemant Desai informed ThePrint. “Proper from the shakha pramukhs (heads of Shiv Sena’s lowest administrative items) to senior leaders, everybody who went to fulfill Balasaheb Thackeray in Matoshree would see Thapa standing within the nook. Everybody knew how shut Thapa was to Balasaheb.”
He mentioned the thought is to ship the message that if somebody this near Bal Thackeray can go away, there should positively be one thing incorrect with the best way Uddhav has been dealing with issues.
“Shinde’s technique could not work although. The Thackeray household isn’t falling for this bait, selecting to not react,” Desai added.
(Edited by Nida Fatima Siddiqui)
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