For the first time since the Shiv Sena's inception 56 years ago, two Dussehra rallies will be held in Mumbai on Wednesday by the party's rival factions -- led by Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and his predecessor Uddhav Thackeray. It is being billed as a show of strength by both camps after a change in government in June. The Mumbai Police have tightened security at the Shivaji Park and Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC). More than 5,000 buses, a number of small tourist vehicles and cars, and a special train have been roped in to ferry supporters of the two factions for their respective Dussehra rallies.
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In a scathing attack on Maharashtra chief minister Eknath Shinde and his supporters, Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray on Wednesday said their reputation as "traitors" will never be washed away. Addressing the annual Dussehra rally at the iconic Shivaji Park ground here, Thackeray lashed out at Shinde, whose rebellion in June this year brought down the Thackeray-led Shiv Sena-NCP-Congress government in the state.
# Those whom we gave everything have betrayed us and those who were not given anything, are all together. This Sena is not of one or two but of all of you. As long as you are with me, I will be the leader of the party: Uddhav Thackeray
# The only thing I feel bad and angry about is that when I was admitted to the hospital, the people whom I gave the responsibility (of the state) became 'Katappa' and betrayed us... They were cutting me and thinking that I will never return from hospital: Uddhav Thackeray
# Prime Minister Narendra Modi participates in Dussehra Rath Yatra during International Dussehra celebrations in Kullu.
# Prime Minister Narendra Modi attends International Dussehra celebrations in Kullu, Himachal Pradesh.
# Buses carrying supporters of the Eknath Shinde faction arrive at the MMRDA ground.
# Supporters of the Uddhav Thackeray faction arrive at Shivaji Park in Mumbai for the Dussehra rally.
# The rallies have generated intense interest in political circles as the rival factions seek to present themselves as the 'real' Shiv Sena and try to claim the legacy of the party founder late Bal Thackeray.
# While the Uddhav Thackeray faction will hold its rally at the historic Shivaji Park in Dadar in central Mumbai, a venue associated with the Shiv Sena since its inception in 1966, the rebel group led by Shinde has organised their event at the MMRDA ground at BKC in the suburbs.
# Bal Thackeray used to make fiery speeches at the Dussehra rallies at Shivaji Park year after year till his death in 2012. Since then, his son Uddhav had been addressing the annual event.
# The Dussehra rally is being held at Shivaji Park after a gap of two years due to COVID-19 restrictions.
# The areas in and around the two venues are awashed in saffron flags and banners.
# Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray is expected to launch attacks on the Shinde faction and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), his former ally which is now part of the government in the state.
# A senior Mumbai Police official said 3,200 officers, 15,200 personnel, 1,500 personnel of the State Reserve Police Force (SRPF), 1,000 jawans of Home Guard, 20 Quick Response Teams (QRTs), 15 Bomb Detection and Disposal Squads (BDDS) have been deployed for the two rallies. At BKC, 2,000 personnel of the Mumbai Police and traffic branch, 5 to 6 DCPs and 15 to 16 ACPs, will be on duty.
# According to bus operators, the Shinde-led faction has hired at least 3,000 private buses from different districts of Maharashtra to ferry its supporters.
# Cars will be parked at India Bulls Finance, IndiaBulls One Centre and Kohinoor Square. For the BKC rally, buses will be parked behind the family court in suburban Bandra, near Canara Bank, Punjab National Bank, the MMRDA ground and near Jio garden.
# The Thackeray faction has booked 700 buses to bring rally participants to Shivaji Park.
First Published: Oct 5, 2022 11:44 AM IST
