Marathi manoos wishes to see Thackeray cousins come together, says Sena (UBT) leader

Kolhapur, Jun 3 (PTI) Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sunil Prabhu on Tuesday said it is the wish of the Marathi-speaking people to see the Thackeray cousins - Uddhav and Raj - come together.

Talking to reporters here, Prabhu said his party sincerely wishes that both the cousins unite.

"Even the wish of the Marathi 'manoos' is that both the cousins come together. Both the (cousins) brothers will decide on this," Prabhu said.

He said the charisma of Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray is such that the party will rise from the ashes like phoenix.

The Shiv Sena (UBT) contested 97 seats in the 2024 Maharashtra assembly polls but could win only 20.

Recently, the Thackeray cousins sparked speculation about a possible reconciliation with statements indicating that they could ignore "trivial issues" and join hands nearly two decades after a bitter parting of ways.

While the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray said uniting in the interests of Marathi manoos is not difficult, former CM Uddhav Thackeray maintained that he was ready to put aside trivial fights provided that those working against Maharashtra's interests were not entertained.

Raj left the undivided Shiv Sena in 2005 after Bal Thackeray announced Uddhav as his successor. He formed the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) the next year.

In its initial days, the MNS achieved political success, winning 13 seats in the assembly polls in 2009. However, that success started dwindling.

Following the 2019 assembly elections, Uddhav Thackeray became the chief minister after his undivided Shiv Sena joined hands with NCP and Congress as part of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance. However, the government collapsed in June 2022 after Eknath Shinde rebelled against him. The rebellion led to a split in the party. PTI PR NP