Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena and Raj Thackeray’s MNS to contest municipal polls together: Sanjay Raut

Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT) MP and chief spokesperson Sanjay Raut on Monday said that Uddhav and Raj Thackeray have reached an understanding to jointly contest the upcoming municipal elections.

“Raj Thackeray and Uddhav Thackeray have agreed that the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) and Shiv Sena will fight together in the municipal elections of Mumbai, Thane, Kalyan-Dombivli, Pune, and Nashik. Apart from these, there are several other municipal corporations where Shiv Sena and MNS have a presence. In some areas, the Sharad Pawar-led NCP is strong, while in others, the Congress holds influence. All these factors are being taken into account,” Raut told reporters.

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Responding to a question on whether the Congress-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) would open its doors to include Raj Thackeray, Raut said, “The Maha Vikas Aghadi is a political alliance in Maharashtra, and the Uddhav-led Shiv Sena is one of its main constituents. We are considering whether the MNS can be accommodated within the MVA. For local body elections, the calculations are different. Also, I alone do not have the right to tell Raj Thackeray that the MVA doors are open. There are three parties in the alliance, and their leaders, too, share good relations with Raj Thackeray.”

“We will have to sit together and decide who can be accommodated. This is not a simple process, as every region in Maharashtra has its own dynamics. We will have to take the MVA along. Where only Shiv Sena, MNS, Congress, or the NCP have a presence, we will have to work out a local formula in consultation with each of them,” Raut added.

When asked who would occupy the mayor’s post after the municipal elections, Raut asserted, “You can be certain that the mayor of Mumbai will be a Marathi, a true saffron-hearted person of Marathi lineage. It will not be anyone from the BJP or those who bow to Delhi.”

“The mayor will be someone who goes to Hutatma Chowk, pays homage to our 105 martyrs of the Samyukta Maharashtra movement, and raises his voice for Maharashtra. Such blood and lineage exist only in Shiv Sena and MNS—two parties created to uphold Marathi pride and identity,” he said.

“The mayor will be ours—and I emphasise the word ‘ours’. The Thackerays will decide who becomes the mayor. This is not merely a political alliance; it is an alliance of body, mind, wealth, heart, and soul,” Raut said about the Sena–MNS partnership.

Referring to a recent meeting held in Thane, Raut said he had discussed civic election strategies with NCP MLA Jitendra Awhad, Shiv Sena MP Rajan Vichare, and MNS leader Avinash Jadhav. The role and relevance of the MVA were also part of the discussions, he added.

Significantly, Raut’s statement came a day after MNS chief Raj Thackeray visited Uddhav Thackeray’s Bandra East residence, ‘Matoshree’, for the second time.

This was the fifth meeting between the Thackeray cousins in the past three months. Prior to Sunday’s meeting, Raj and Uddhav had met at Sanjay Raut’s residence during the birthday celebration of Raut’s grandson, which was also attended by NCP MP Supriya Sule. Following that, Raj Thackeray visited ‘Matoshree’ again, where he and Uddhav held detailed discussions.