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By:

Abhijit Mulye

21 August 2024 at 11:29:11 am

Thackerays cede hinterland to Mahayuti war machine

Mumbai: The dust is rising in the semi-urban towns of Akola, Amravati, and Parbhani, but it is not from the cavalcade of the “Tigers” of Maharashtra. As the campaign for elections to over 242 municipal councils and 42 nagar panchayats reaches a fever pitch ahead of the December 2 vote, a curious silence hangs over the opposition camp. While Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and his deputies, Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar, are engaged in a “carpet bombing” campaign—crisscrossing the state with...

Thackerays cede hinterland to Mahayuti war machine

Mumbai: The dust is rising in the semi-urban towns of Akola, Amravati, and Parbhani, but it is not from the cavalcade of the “Tigers” of Maharashtra. As the campaign for elections to over 242 municipal councils and 42 nagar panchayats reaches a fever pitch ahead of the December 2 vote, a curious silence hangs over the opposition camp. While Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and his deputies, Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar, are engaged in a “carpet bombing” campaign—crisscrossing the state with the ferocity of a general election—the Thackeray brothers, Uddhav and Raj, are conspicuously absent from the rural stump. Their absence is not just a scheduling quirk; it is a symptom of the new, ruthless realpolitik that has gripped Maharashtra. The ruling Mahayuti alliance has adopted a “no election is too small” doctrine. For CM Fadnavis, these local body polls are not merely about civic amenities; they are a structural imperative. By treating municipal council elections with the gravity of a legislative assembly battle—holding 4-5 rallies a day—the BJP is aiming to capture the “supply lines” of Maharashtra’s politics. Municipal councils control local contracts, town planning, and, crucially, the mobilization networks that deliver votes in bigger elections. Existential legitimacy DCM Eknath Shinde, too, is fighting for existential legitimacy. His faction’s presence in these polls is a test of whether his “Shiv Sena” has truly inherited the grassroots cadre or if it remains a legislative coup without a popular base. The heavy presence of the CM and DCMs in small towns sends a powerful message to the local voter: “We are here, we have the resources, and we control the tap.” In stark contrast, the Shiv Sena (UBT) and the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) appear to have drawn a defensive perimeter around the Mumbai-Pune-Nashik belt—the state’s urban “Golden Triangle.” Uddhav Thackeray’s campaign strategy has been remarkably insular. Instead of matching the Mahayuti’s rally-for-rally blitz in the districts, the UBT leadership has remained anchored in Mumbai, fighting a narrative war rather than an electoral one. The recent “Satyacha Morcha” (March for Truth) focused heavily on alleged irregularities in Mumbai’s voter lists. While this is a critical systemic issue, it is a “meta-battle” that resonates little with a voter in rural Vidarbha worrying about water supply or road contracts. The perception that the Thackerays have “left the whole of Maharashtra” to the Mahayuti is rooted in resource allocation. Stripped of the party name, symbol, and funds, the UBT faction seems to be conserving its depleted energy for the upcoming “crown jewel” battles—the Municipal Corporations of Mumbai (BMC) and Thane. They appear to have calculated that retaining Mumbai is a matter of survival, while winning a council in Jalgaon or Solapur is a luxury they cannot afford to chase. Outsourcing opposition This retreat has left a vacuum in the hinterland. In many of the 242 councils, the “Maha Vikas Aghadi” (MVA) challenge has effectively been outsourced to local satraps of the Congress and the NCP (Sharad Pawar). The Congress is busy trying to save remains of its erstwhile bastions. In regions like Vidarbha, the battle is being fought by local Congress units, often contesting independently or in “friendly fights” with UBT candidates. While, the NCP (SP) faction retains influence in Western Maharashtra without the unified “air cover” of a joint MVA leadership tour, these local battles have turned into disjointed skirmishes against a unified Mahayuti army. The Shiv Sena (UBT) has effectively ceded the semi-urban space to its allies, or worse, to its enemies. This is a dangerous gamble. If the Mahayuti sweeps these councils, they will build a fortress of local patronage that will be nearly impossible to breach in the next Assembly election. The current state of realpolitik in Maharashtra is characterized by an asymmetry of ambition. The BJP-led alliance is playing to conquer the state’s geography, ensuring their writ runs from the Mantralaya to the smallest Nagar Panchayat. The Thackerays, meanwhile, are playing to protect their history and their core urban identity. By remaining unseen in the hinterland, the Thackeray brothers may be inadvertently signalling that they are no longer pan-Maharashtra leaders, but rather the chieftains of a shrinking urban empire. In politics, visibility is viability. In the dusty towns of rural Maharashtra, the only flags flying high today are saffron—but they are being waved by Fadnavis and Shinde, not the heirs of Balasaheb. Uddhav, Raj Thackeray meet again Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray on Thursday met Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) president Raj in Mumbai and both leaders are understood to have discussed seat-sharing arrangements for the upcoming municipal corporation polls. Uddhav visited ‘Shivtirth’, the residence of Raj in Dadar in central Mumbai, the latest in a series of meetings this year between the once politically estranged cousins who have been warming up to each other in recent times amid signs of reconciliation and possible alliance between their parties. Although the Shiv Sena (UBT) and MNS are yet to formally announce an alliance, the Thackeray cousins have given enough hints of an imminent tie-up for local body polls, especially the crucial Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and other civic bodies in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region, Pune and Nashik, where the two outfits have pockets of influence. A Shiv Sena (UBT) leader disclosed that during the meeting, Uddhav and Raj are believed to have discussed potential seat-sharing between their parties for the civic polls and also the alleged irregularities in voters list, an issue which the Opposition has been raising vociferously. They also discussed the reported resistance by the Congress, a partner of the Shiv Sena (UBT), to align with the MNS, he said. Earlier this week, Uddhav and Raj had submitted a letter to the State Election Commission seeking more time to submit objections and suggestions in draft voters list. Ten pc Mumbai voters have duplicate entries Nearly 10.64 per cent or more than 11 lakh of Mumbai’s 1.03 crore electorate have duplicate enrolments in the electoral roll, as per data shared by the Maharashtra State Election Commission (SEC). The data shows that a majority of wards with the highest number of duplicate voters were previously represented by Opposition corporators. The SEC on Wednesday extended the deadline for submitting objections from November 27 to December 3. The final voters’ list will be published on December 10, according to a statement issued by the SEC. The data shows that 4.33 lakh voters appear more than once in the draft voters’ list published last week, with multiple entries ranging from two to as many as 103 times. This has pushed the total number of duplicate enrolments to 11,01,505. The SEC has attributed the repetition of names to factors such as printing errors, voters’ relocation, and failure to remove the names of deceased persons. Booth-level workers will now conduct field visits, fill forms, and obtain verification undertakings to ensure each voter is listed only once, officials said. An SEC official indicated that Mumbai’s civic elections, slated to be completed by January 31, 2026, as per a Supreme Court directive, may see a slight delay. Depending on the pace of corrections by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), the polls could either be held by the end of January or the SEC may seek an extension to the first week of February, he added. The SEC data further shows that four of the five wards with the highest number of duplicate voters were previously represented by Opposition corporators from parties such as Shiv Sena (UBT) and the Nationalist Congress Party (SP). Two of these wards fall under the Worli assembly constituency, represented by Sena (UBT) MLA Aaditya Thackeray.

Melody man

Updated: Mar 3

Sarod maestro Anupam Shobhakar talks to 'The Perfect Voice' about his instrument KaliMa and how music transcends all barriers and boundaries

Anupam Shobhakar

In a rich gathering of music and art, the Kala Ghoda Arts Festival saw music maestro Anupam Shobhakar perform, treating audiences to his beautiful blend of Indian and Western music. The Brooklyn-based composer, record producer and sarodist will mark Holi with a new album, Liquid Reality that combines the Hindustani classical tradition with global sounds.


He’s invented the KaliMa, an instrument that combines the guitar with the sarod. In a conversation with The Perfect Voice, Shobhakar talks about music transcending barriers of language and region.


Can the sarod play western music?

It’s totally incumbent on the musician behind the instrument. No instrument plays Indian or western music on its own. I would encourage a deep listen to an album called, Still Point: Turning World. This was a collaboration between me and guitarist Joel Harrison. The meeting of eastern and western ideas goes quite deep in it. We tried to stay away from the shallow, exotic ways these things are done sometimes by musicians from all styles. I follow that mantra myself — learn and respect all music equally.


How does music transcend barriers and boundaries?

Music is one of the only mediums that does so. It’s the very reflection of human existence. You can have two people of totally opposite cultures in terms of language or food or appearance but if they have instruments, they will communicate musically and a bridge will be born. This is a profound thing. Even animals respond to music. It’s truly a transcendent medium of communication.


What's the concept of Liquid Reality?

Liquid Reality is my new album coming out on AGS recordings and I’m very excited for it. As a global musician and composer, it really highlights the ethos of international unity for me as I live in the most diverse part of the world culturally which is New York City. It features very diverse music from a modern adaptation of ghazal to a reshaped shakti classic to fiery duos for guitar and kanjira to deep episodic Brazilian inspired music. It has some of the greatest players and improvisers alive today.


When you collaborate with artistes who excel in different forms of music, how do you manage to put diverse styles and sounds together?

It all comes down to the writing and the integrity of your ideas and aesthetic evolution. I don’t like to think of music as any different from how one puts food together. If you have good taste - your food will taste good. Music and art in general are very similar.


What exactly is the KaliMa and how does it help you express your music?

KaliMa is my new fretted and fretless double-neck guitar. Being a child of both worlds, of western and eastern musically, it was very important for me to have an instrument that covers both universes. Now from my sarod repertoire to my western rock and jazz influences - the KaliMa helps me cover it all. As for the name - my family have been Kali worshippers for generations. I wanted to honour their legacy by naming the instrument KaliMa. This instrument was commissioned in 2023 and made by a wonderful luthier from Istanbul, Turkiye by the name of Ave Guitars. He’s a one-man Stradivarius when it comes to guitar building and given how young he is, his skill is unparalleled globally according to me.


How does it create sounds that are similar to Indian and western music?

The sounds any instrument creates are up to the instrumentalist. If I want to play a two-hour rendition of say Raga Marwa on it KaliMa allows me to do just that. If I want to explore deep western harmony or just go all out playing rock and metal, the KaliMa allows and blesses that side too.


What kind of music have you created on the KaliMa?

My new Album Liquid Reality is entirely composed on the KaliMa. I have been playing Indian classical concerts all over the world on it and my trio called the Kalki trio as well with Swami selva Ganesh on kanjira and Amit Mishra on tabla. The music tends to flow more naturally for me through this instrument I call KaliMa.


What inspires your music?

I don’t think I have any external inspiration because music is pretty awe inspiring to begin with. If my mind is at ease - the music flows naturally for me. The challenge and craft come into capturing the ideas and then setting them free!

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