Mumbai: Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray on Friday welcomed the Bombay High Court's decision to allow his faction to hold its annual Dussehra rally at the iconic Shivaji Park ground in Mumbai, and said his party's faith in the judiciary stood vindicated. The Shiv Sena's ally, the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), will also hailed the order.
Thackeray said it is the Maharashtra government's responsibility to maintain law and order during the October 5 rally and expressed the hope the state administration will discharge its duty. Our faith in the judiciary stands vindicated. We never stopped holding the congregation at Vijayadashmi at Shivaji Park since the inception of the party, except during the time of the coronavirus pandemic. We are taking this tradition forward, he told reporters after the HC order. The Sena president, whose faction was locked in a battle for the venue with the rebel group led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, appealed to Shiv Sainiks to maintain discipline during the Dussehra rally and ensure decades-old tradition is not tarnished.
He urged them to maintain discipline while coming to the venue in central Mumbai. Other Shiv Sena leaders loyal to Thackeray also welcomed the HC order.
Party spokesperson Manisha Kayande said this year's rally at the Shivaji Park ground, which will be held at the venue after a gap of two years, will be grand. There must have been some pressure on the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) which had earlier denied permission to the Thackeray-led faction to use the ground for its Dussehra rally, she claimed.
After the denial of the permission, the Thackeray-led camp had moved the High Court. Shiv Sena leader Anil Parab said all the terms and conditions laid down by the court will be followed. State Transport minister Uday Samant, who owes allegiance to the Eknath Shinde camp, said the next course will be decided after studying the high court's order.