The Legacy of Bal Thackeray

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The legacy of Bal Thackeray

MUMBAI: Controversial.

Communal. Demagogue. And

the only man who could bring

Mumbai to a halt. At the same

time: a talented cartoonist, a

master orator, a shrewd

politician and a hero who

fought for the rights of

Marathis.

Depending on which side of the divide one is, these are the many

perceptions of Shiv Sena President Bal Thackeray, a figure who will go

down in Indian history as one of the most divisive and controversial

personalities.

Born in 1926 to Keshav Thackeray - popularly known as Prabhodhankar

after his magazine Prabhodhan - ironically, Bal Thackeray came from a

legacy of tolerance. His father was a social reformer who worked to

eradicate the evils of the caste system. In the 1950s, he was one of the

leading voices of the Samyukta Maharashtra Movement that was launched

to create a state for Maharashtrians on linguistic grounds. But the young

Thackeray would take from that movement, not too much of its progressive

and forward-thinking aspects, but its violent nature.

Along with RK Laxman, Mr Thackeray started his career in Bombay - as it

was then known - as a cartoonist for the prestigious Free Press Journal.

The talented Mr Thackeray was acclaimed for his clean strokes, his flair

for wit and his keen observation. In 1960, he started his own journal

Marmik - meaning poignant - which turned into a launch pad for his entry

into the political arena. It was then that the 'insider-outsider' debate

sparked off in Mumbai as he began targeting Gujaratis and South Indians,

accusing them of snatching jobs he claimed were meant for local Marathi-

speaking Maharashtrians. Marmik, in fact, even published names of

people from these two communities. Each list would end with a

provocative call: read and stay silent.

It was with this objective that in 1966, on Dussehra, Mr Thackeray

launched his party, the Shiv Sena at a mammoth rally held at the Shivaji

Park in Dadar in central Mumbai. As the rally broke up, the crowds spread

out to attack the "outsiders" and the city got its first brush of Sena's politics

of violence. Though there was widespread condemnation, the Sena

justified it calling this their fight for the sons-of the-soil. In 1970, the Sena

launched a campaign against them and Mr Thackeray's workers were

accused of murdering Krishna Desai, a stalwart communist leader. The

Left also accused the Congress of supporting the Sena so as to end its

hold on the city's working class and trade unions.

Mr Thackeray had by now been able to successfully build a massive

personality cult. Unlike other khaki-clad leaders, he openly smoked pipes,

wore sun-glasses and even drank beer - an image that was in stark

contrast to the growing hooliganism of his workers. Even his fiercest

critics won't deny that Mr Thackeray was perhaps the most charismatic

People | Written by Sreenivasan Jain | Updated: November 17, 2012 18:15 IST

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mass leader Maharashtra has ever seen. A master orator, Mr Thackeray's

followers grew in numbers as he would continue to rouse the crowds with

his fiery and often vitriolic speeches which would invariably always be

punctuated with pot-shots and under-the-belt remarks taking on his

political rivals. His supporters loved him and would wait for the Sena's

annual Dussehra rally to hear their 'Balasaheb' speak. This mass hysteria

gave him a larger-than-life appeal, all without once holding any public

office.

In 1984, the new credo of Hindutva got the Shiv Sena and the BJP to join

hands in Mumbai and Maharashtra. To propagate his cult-hood, Mr

Thackeray too went for a makeover. Dressed in white or saffron robes,

with a blazing tika on his forehead, Mr Thackeray would sit on a massive

silver throne. Two to three necklaces made of rudraaksh beads would add

to the image of his new avatar - that of a Godman.

The most serious allegation Mr Thackeray faced was of being communal

and anti-minorities. From South Indians and Gujaratis, the Sena had a

new target: Muslims. The fallout of the Ram Janmabhoomi movement had

caused tension across the country. Thackeray used his party newspaper

and mouth piece, Saamna, in which, just on the eve of the Babri Masjid

demolition, he wrote an incendiary editorial, "Towards Ayodhya". He is

quoted as saying, "Now, no one can stop the construction of the Ram

temple at Ayodhya. An ocean of millions of Ram devotees is surging to

Lord Ram's Ayodhya. Our brave Shiv Sainiks are also joining in."

It is still contested if Shiv Sainiks actually took part in the demolition. But

Thackeray is believed to have said that if that was true, then he was proud

of them. The CBI, however, named him as one of the accused in the Babri

demolition and accused him of conspiracy.

The 'anti-Muslim' tag, earned greater currency post the demolition as the

terrible communal riots in 1993 tore Mumbai apart - some say forever.

Over 1,000 Muslims were killed and once again, the Sena was accused of

playing an active role. Perhaps, the strongest evidence to support Mr

Thackeray's alleged hatred for Muslims is found in the report compiled by

the Justice BN Srikrishna Commission which looked into the riots and

indicted Thackeray and Sena leaders.

In a searing comment, Justice Srikrishna said, "There is no doubt that the

Shiv Sena and Shiv Sainiks took the lead in organising attacks on

Muslims and their properties under the guidance of several leaders of the

Shiv Sena from the level of Shakha Pramukh to the Shiv Sena pramukh,

Bal Thackeray who, like a veteran General, commanded his loyal Shiv

Sainiks to retaliate by organised attacks against Muslims."

Mr Thackeray was tried and acquitted in several cases but only for hate

speech and never for conspiracy and the mass killings. His party too

denied the accusation claiming had it not been for the Shiv Sena, Mumbai

would have burnt even longer. Much later, Mr Thackeray had issued a call

to form Hindu suicide squads to counter Islamic fundamentalism and terror

in India. But he would also soften his stance stating he was not against all

Muslims but only those who acted against the country's interests.

The riots led to a deep polarization and the Sena-BJP alliance swept to

power in 1995. Though Maharashtra was officially governed from its

Secretariat - Mantralaya - in South Mumbai, Matoshree, the Thackeray

residence in Bandra became the new power centre. Respected by a few,

but feared by all, politicians, industrialists and actors would be at the



'Tiger's' beck and call, including the King of Pop, Michael Jackson who

posed with Thackeray and got clearance for his sole concert in India. It

was also an open secret that Congress leader and Bollywood actor Sunil

Dutt had to plead before Mr Thackeray, whose government had arrested

his son Sanjay, accusing him of being involved in the 1993 Bombay blasts

that followed the riots. It was this dominating influence over the city, without

officially holding any position that earned Mr Thackeray the nickname

'remote-control.'

Through fear and intimidation, Bal Thackeray ruled Mumbai.

Accused of being dictatorial and a demagogue, Mr Thackeray was quoted

by the Asia Week saying, "I am a great admirer of (Adolf) Hitler, and I am

not ashamed to say so! I do not say that I agree with all the methods he

employed, but he was a wonderful organiser and orator, and I feel that he

and I have several things in common... What India really needs is a dictator

who will rule benevolently, but with an iron hand."

But the honeymoon was short-lived. In 1999, his government was voted

out. Mr Thackeray could not even vote as the Election Commission had

banned him from voting and contesting elections for 6 years as he had

been found guilty of electoral malpractices. Out of power, the Sena

remained confined to only ruling Mumbai's civic body. The diatribe though

continued and the party turned into becoming the moral police and cultural

arbiter of the state. Mr Thackeray lampooned those who celebrated

Valentine's Day, his Sainiks vandalising shops that sold related

merchandise. His tirade against Pakistan grew fiercer and took an ugly

turn when Shiv Sainiks dug up the cricket pitch at the Ferozshah Kotla

Stadium in Delhi.

Yet, Mr Thackeray remained above the law. In 2000, he was arrested for

his inflammatory speeches by his former acolyte Chhagan Bhujbal.

Mumbai came to a standstill. But the arrest was seen only as tokenism

and Thackeray was let off.

The rhetoric of intimidation and violence was finding fewer and fewer

takers. In 2004, the alliance faced a humiliating defeat at the hands of the

Congress-NCP combine, never tasting power again. Then, two years after

the ignominy, the Thackeray family was split right in between, with his

charismatic nephew Raj Thackeray exiting the party, angry that

Thackeray's son Uddhav was being projected as the heir to his father's

throne.

Mr Thackeray faced further embarrassment, as right under his nose, Raj's

new outfit - the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena - sharply cut into the Sena's

Marathi vote-bank. To counter this loss, the Sena found a new target to

'appease' the Marathi Manoos: the city's North Indian population. To

create a fear psychosis, a few taxi and auto rickshaw drivers, vegetable

vendors, milkmen - all migrants from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar were

attacked, forcing many to leave the city. Again, in a provocative editorial,

"Ek Bihari, Sau Bimari" (One Bihar, Hundred problems), he slammed

them as an unwanted lot.

The party that had rechristened Bombay as Mumbai also targeted local

boy and cricketer Sachin Tendulkar for his statement that "Mumbai

belonged to India." Actor Shah Rukh Khan was also not spared when he

spoke in favour of Pakistanis playing in the Indian Premier League.

As his party's political fortunes declined - losing even the 2009 state



elections - so did Mr Thackeray's health. In his last Dussehra rally speech

in 2012, the ailing leader couldn't make it in person and the Sena played

out a pre-recorded video message. Frail, his hands shaking, Mr

Thackeray knew he was sinking. Unseen ever before, with folded hands

Mr Thackeray pleaded to his followers to support his son Uddhav.

If there was any solace in his final days, it was the Sena's splendid victory

in 2012 Mumbai civic polls and also in the first glimmerings of a patch up

between his son and estranged nephew.

However, it still remains uncertain what they will make of the Thackeray

legacy. His admirers see it as asserting the rights of the Marathi manoos.

But his critics see as one of great paradox: of a man who injected a

culture of intolerance into the veins of India's most tolerant city.

The Legacy of Bal Thackeray

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