When we were kids we were always told to sit on the first bench, closest to the teacher and the blackboard and were instructed by our parents to make friends with the child who came first and the ones who are bright. It must have seemed irrelevant and crazy at that time, but we can relate now to what was mentioned to us years back. Vibes and the aura of people matter a lot. You feel worn out after leaving a conversation, your stomach drops as soon as you read their name on an incoming call. Why does meeting with some people make you feel uplifted and inspired while meeting with others makes you want to run away? If we are lucky, we meet people who build us, make us positive, and support our growth. But few come in contact with toxic people who pull them down and destroy them to a point of o return.
A talented photographer, a good soul and a politician who got a set political pedestal should have been in a comfortable space. But Uddhav Thackeray has been ill and frustrated for a long time. After Balasaheb Thackeray’s sad demise, all he had to do was to get closer to people and hold them in his arms. However, what happened was completely different. Party workers became distant, access to the head of the party was cut off completely and the few top office bearers started calling shots without keeping Udhhav Thackeray in the loop. He had no control over the mouthpiece of Dainik Saamna despite being the Editor. The mouthpiece printed obnoxious material that would harm the party but he did not care to have a stock of it. Neither was it discussed. People were slowly made to believe that he holds no control and that he is just a puppet. There are constant statements made by his spokespersons that he has to stand by, which have damaged the party more than done any good.
A prime example of belated insight was Uddhav Thackeray’s choice to resign as chief minister even before the floor test. He ought to have recognised the signs when his loyal lieutenants left him. He let his son Aditya and his party’s loudmouth spokesperson Sanjay Raut defend the administration from impending collapse rather than doing damage control. Uddhav as a result lost his position of authority in the Maharashtra legislature and resigned from his position in the Legislative Council. The scenario in Maharashtra is the height of irony because Uddhav could have remained chief minister if he had consented to let the BJP form the government during the first two years of the five-year mandate. He claimed that the BJP had approved of this formula, but the BJP refuted his allegation. It would have been practical on Uddhav’s part to permit the BJP to lead the government for half of the term, assuming there was in fact such an arrangement. The Shiv Sena might have left the government and exposed the BJP if the BJP had refused to leave and uphold the purported vow. The party might have even avoided splitting up if it had done so.
Due to his collaboration with Congress and the NCP, Uddhav Thackeray wasted the political capital his father had worked so hard to accumulate. Senior colleagues harshly criticised Uddhav for portraying his son as his successor and heir to the party’s top position in unseemly haste. Balasaheb Thackeray avoided running for office or holding any lucrative positions. Aside from that, he chose Manohar Joshi, a longtime party supporter, above his son as the candidate for chief minister. Uddhav Thackeray currently lacks both the privileges of power and the dignity of being the leader of a party that formerly controlled the government.
One of the major reason why he is in this situation is having dumb backbenchers and vicious political scorpions as his advisors. Well, description is enough, we all know whom we are referring to. Uddhav Thackeray was systematically shattered in three strokes. He was coaxed to become the CM even though he wasn’t keen. It was advised to target him and pull him down subtly with self-created pressure by his own traitor advisers. When Uddhav Thackeray chose to run for chief minister, he opened himself up to accusations of making concessions in exchange for power from people inside his own Sena. He was perceived as rivalling for power with Shiv Sena leaders rather than serving as their arbitrator. The Thackeray myth crumbled because he was behaving commonly and not like his tiger-hearted father. We don’t know if he followed Pawar’s Politics, but he should have followed his father’s action plan for sure. Uddhav Thackeray realised his error after Eknath Shinde rebelled. It was an attempt at course correction to leave the Chief Minister’s bungalow before he resigned as Chief Minister, but the damage had already been done.
He was persuaded in error to include his son in his Cabinet. Due to his lack of interest in becoming Prime Minister or Chief Minister, Kanshi Ram was similarly extremely strong to Balasaheb; as a result, people who assumed office from their teams dared not challenge them. Political power may not always be more effective in India than moral authority. Making son Aditya a minister opened the door for accusations of dynasty and nepotism. Aditya was exposed to the system too early without gaining much experience. That also can be a setback to his career.
Uddhav Thackeray’s toxic backbenchers had a brilliant plan to get him into Sharad Pawar’s hands. He allowed the idea to spread that Sharad Pawar was the decision-maker in this instance. He was the three-party alliance’s founding father and the government’s top negotiator and problem solver. Balasaheb was somewhat succeeded by Sharad Pawar. He assumed the persona of Thackeray Senior. ‘Matoshree’ was pushed away by the power centre. Pawar adopted the Sarkar persona in place of Thackeray. Although Balasaheb and Sharad Pawar were close friends, Balasaheb was never perceived as needing counsel from others. Even after Sharad Pawar rose to prominence in Delhi politics, it was always Sharad Pawar who travelled to Balasaheb, not the other way around. Uddhav Thackeray’s inexperience in part allowed Sanjay Raut too large a space within the Sena, upsetting other senior leaders, who were already opposed to the new alliance with the Congress and Sharad Pawar.
Uddhav Thackeray can still revive himself and his party, provided he takes control of his mouthpiece Dainik Saamna and shuts his male and female loudspeakers that speak brainlessly and chooses to cut ties with toxic people who have brought him to this situation. A failure is an event, not a person. Uddhav Thackeray has the blessings of his father and the goodwill of many Maharashtrians. He can rise again if he returns to Babasaheb’s ideology, throws away toxic chatterboxes and gets back to his real Hindutva family that his father bonded with. “A man is known by the company he keeps. Change your company, change your life.” Don’t mingle with the backbenchers. Remember what your Dad said.
All the best to Uddhav Thackeray.
