‘Manase and Dil Se’: Sena (UBT) signals openness to alliance with Raj Thackeray’s MNS ahead of civic polls

The idea of a possible rapprochement was first publicly floated last month when Raj Thackeray discussed it in an interview with filmmaker Mahesh Manjrekar.

Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut on Saturday said the party is open to an alliance with the Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS), hinting at a possible reconciliation between the estranged Thackeray cousins nearly two decades after their political split, PTI reported.

Speaking to reporters, Raut said the party’s approach towards an alliance with MNS was positive and rooted in the shared interest of the Marathi manoos (Marathi-speaking people).

"Uddhavji’s stand regarding an alliance with Raj Thackeray for the sake of the Marathi people is ‘manase’ and ‘dil se’ (from the mind and the heart),” Raut said, making a wordplay on the Marathi pronunciation of MNS, as quoted by PTI.

The possibility of a Sena (UBT)–MNS tie-up has gained traction in Maharashtra's political circles ever since both Uddhav Thackeray and Raj Thackeray made public remarks suggesting they were willing to overlook “trivial issues” for the larger interest of Marathi identity and unity.

Local body elections, including for key civic corporations in Mumbai, Thane, Nashik, Nagpur and Pune, are scheduled later this year, prompting renewed chatter over potential political realignments.

Meanwhile, senior MNS leader Sandeep Deshpande, speaking to reporters on Thursday, said that while Raj Thackeray is not opposed to the idea of an alliance, any proposal must be concrete and credible.

"If the Shiv Sena (UBT) feels an alliance with the MNS is possible, they should come forward with a substantial proposal. Raj Thackeray will take a decision on it,” Deshpande said, according to PTI.

He also recalled earlier overtures from the MNS for a tie-up with Sena (UBT), which he claimed had ended in betrayal. “If the Shiv Sena (UBT) feels an alliance with the MNS is possible, they should come forward with a substantial proposal. Raj Thackeray will take a decision on it,” he reiterated.

The idea of a possible rapprochement was first publicly floated last month when Raj Thackeray discussed it in an interview with filmmaker Mahesh Manjrekar. Uddhav Thackeray responded positively soon after, fuelling speculation of a renewed Thackeray partnership on Maharashtra’s political landscape.

Raj Thackeray left the undivided Shiv Sena in 2005 to form the MNS the following year. Since then, the two parties have charted separate paths, with MNS occasionally aligning with the BJP, a rival of the Uddhav-led Shiv Sena (UBT).