After the high-profile reunion of the Thackeray cousins, Maharashtra politics is witnessing another tactical coming together — this time within the Pawar family — signalling how dynastic parties are opting for strategic unity ahead of crucial civic elections in 2026, and at the same time also presenting a survival template for other estranged family-run affairs in India.
Uddhav Thackeray and Raj Thackeray recently announced a Shiv Sena (UBT)–Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) alliance, ending a 20-year war to consolidate the Marathi ‘manoos’ vote against the BJP–led Mahayuti. Days later, Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar declared that his Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) faction, which is part of the Mahayuti, and uncle Sharad Pawar’s NCP, would jointly contest the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) and Pune civic polls.
In both cases, it was pressure from party workers and a clear threat of the BJP behemoth that seemed to drive the “family unity” push, basically for political survival.
While these tie-ups stop short of full mergers, they reflect a pattern in Indian politics where family-led parties, weakened by splits, can opt for tactical reunions to protect legacy vote banks, curb defections, and boost cadre morale amid organisational erosion and electoral setbacks.
Whether a complete merger is possible due to unresolved leadership issues remains to be seen but the limited cooperation offers a middle path in such situations, say observes
Incidentally, dynastic fissures are not unique to Maharashtra.
Several parts of the country are influenced by family-run regional parties, including the DMK in Tamil Nadu (Karunanidhi family), Shiromani Akali Dal (Badal family) in Punjab, the Telugu Desam Party and YSR family outfits in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, and JD(S)-linked lineages in Karnataka. In many of them, succession disputes, individual ambitions, and intra-family competition have triggered splits, at times also leading to formation of new parties.
Take the example of the YSR family in Andhra Pradesh and the bitter dispute between YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) supremo Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy and his sister Sharmila. In 2024, Jagan lost power to the TDP-led alliance; his estranged sister Y.S. Sharmila is with the Congress and continues to be his most vocal critic.
While the Andhra sibling rift mirrors family splits, in Haryana, the Chautala family offers another textbook case.
Founded by Chaudhary Devi Lal, the INLD fractured after internal rivalries. Around 2019, Ajay Chautala’s sons, Dushyant and Digvijay, launched the Jannayak Janta Party (JJP), dividing the family vote and weakening the INLD, though there have been periodic reconciliation attempts, according to those aware of family dynamics.
Punjab’s Badal family, too, followed a similar path.
Over the years, the Shiromani Akali Dal has seen multiple splits, most notably in 2011 when Manpreet Singh Badal quit to form the People’s Party of Punjab. Despite occasional factional mergers, no comprehensive family reunion has materialised, and the party remains fragmented amid electoral decline.
No wonder therefore that Maharashtra developments are being followed closely with Pawars and Thackerays offering a solution to prevent organisational erosion, even if long-term unity may be uncertain, say observers