Uddhav Led Shiv Sena Workers Take-out ‘Flame’ March To Bal Thackeray’s Memorial

Workers of the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena camp on Tuesday visited the memorial of Shiv Sena founder late Bal Thackeray in Mumbai carrying a flaming torch with them, a day after the Election Commission allotted 'mashaal' symbol to the party faction.

The party workers also visited 'Matoshree', the private residence of former chief minister Uddhav Thackeray in suburban Bandra, with a burning torch in their hands.

Uddhav Thackeray asked the party workers to realise the importance of the new symbol.

This is being viewed as the Uddhav Thackeray camp's efforts to make people aware of the new symbol, ahead of the bypoll to Andheri east Assembly seat in Mumbai scheduled on November 3.

The party workers also took out processions with the new symbol in different districts, including Nagpur and Aurangabad. 

The Election Commission on Monday allotted 'flaming torch' (mashaal) election symbol to the Uddhav Thackeray faction of Shiv Sena, rejecting their claim to the 'Trishul' citing religious connotation.

In an order on the dispute in the Shiv Sena, the Election Commission allotted 'ShivSena - Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray' as the party name for the Thackeray faction, and 'Balasahebanchi Shiv Sena' (Balasaheb's Shiv Sena) as the name for the Eknath Shinde group of the party.

On Tuesday, the Uddhav Thackeray faction members, including former Mumbai mayor Kishori Pednekar, visited Bal Thackeray's memorial at the Shivaji Park in Dadar area and paid respects to the late leader and the party's new election symbol.    

The Uddhav Thackeray-led faction will contest the bypoll to Andheri east seat in Mumbai on the 'flaming torch' symbol.  

The by-election, necessitated due to the death of incumbent Sena MLA Ramesh Latke, is expected to be a straight fight between the Thackeray faction and the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), a first after the vertical split in the Shiv Sena in June this year. 

(With PTI inputs)