Shiv Sena

Shiv Sena or शिव सेना (meaning Army of Shiva, referring to Shivaji) is a political party in India founded on June 19, 1966 by Bal Thackeray, who is the president of the party. It is a Hindu party, though it is strongly associated with Maratha identity. In the 13th Lok Sabha (1999-2004), it had 15 (out of 545) members. During that period, the party was part of the government coalition at the national level. Manohar Joshi, a Shivsainik, was the Speaker of Lok Sabha 2002-2004.

Shiv Sena has its employment cell Shiv Udyog Sena. Bharatiya Kamgar Sena ("Indian Worker's Army"), a labour union, is affiliated to the Shiv Sena. The Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Sena ("All India Students' Army") is the student wing of SS.

Although the party is mainly based in Maharashtra, it has in recent years started to form branches all over India. That work has however, had rather limited success. A sister party in Nepal, Nepal Shiv Sena, has also been founded.

Origins of the Shiv Sena

Mumbai became the economic capital of India after the incorporation of the Bombay presidency in the Marathi-speaking state. However, the majority of the industry and trade continued to be owned by the people from outside the state, especially those belonging to the Gujarati and Marwari communities. Out of the resentment and envy about the 'marginilization' of the native Marathi people to people from other states, the Shiv Sena was born.

Thackeray, then a cartoonist for the Free Press journal, initially targeted South Indians and painted them as being foreign. Thackeray later launched attacks on Gujaratis, Marwaris, followed by people from Uttar Pradesh in his most recent tirade. Thackeray's fiery slogans and loaded oratory caught the imagination of the Maharashtrian youth who joined the Sena in huge numbers.

Thackeray has been the leader of Shiv Sena for almost 39 years. The Thackerays have virtually enjoyed First Family status in Maharashtra for the past 20 years, although the Sena was in power for just over four years - 1995 to 1999.

Sena in Maharashtra

Maharashtra has always been the main stronghold of the party. The party has ruled the state in coalition with the Bharatiya Janata Party. The SS-BJP did however lose the 2004 state assembly election. SS is now the main opposition party in the state. The BJP-SS combine governs the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation. Traditionally the main strongholds of SS have been Mumbai and the Konkan coastal areas. However, in the 2004 Lok Sabha elections the result was reversed. SS made inroads in the interior parts of the state, while suffering losses in Mumbai.

Sena in Goa

SS is active in Goa. Although its an ally of BJP in Maharashtra and on the national level, the party is opposing the BJP government in the state.

Activities of the Shiv Sena

The Shiv Sena has traditionally taken aggressive political stances under the pretense of defending Maratha culture and the Hindu ethos in general. To that extent, they have organized protests, pickets, market shutdowns and bandhs that have been known to degenerate into riots.

The Shiv Sena has aggressively campaigned against what they labelled as 'corrupting' western influences on Indian culture such as Valentine's Day. In addition, they have been accused of instigating the riots in Mumbai that followed the destruction of the Babri Mosque in 1992.

In 23 January 1993, the then Congress-led Government of Maharashtra appointed Justice B.N. Srikrishna, then a sitting Judge of the Bombay High Court (later retired as a judge of the Supreme Court of India) to head a one-man commission to investigate the riots. The incoming B.J.P.-Shiv Sena government dismissed the Commission, but was forced to reinstate it after widespread public protests. The commission's report, finally published in September 1998 widely indicted Bal Thackeray and other members of the Shiv Sena for provoking most of the violence and murders. However, no indictments were made due to lack of evidence and allegations of anti-Maratha bias on the part of the jurist(s).

In 1998, Shiv Sainiks attacked movie theatres in Bombay over Fire, a controversial film with a lesbian theme that was criticized as anti-Hindu propaganda from a the left wing for it's alleged misrepresentation of the Hindu ethos. The screening of the movie was withdrawn. In 1999, Shiv Sainiks 'vandalised' a cricket pitch in Delhi to stop the Pakistani cricket team from playing there.

In Jan 2006 Shiv Sena party workers led by its Shahar Pramukh (City Chapter Chief) Sadanand Tharwal, attacked the Station Master and deputy of the Dombivli Railway Station. ^*

On February 14, 2006, the Sir John group, headed by Vipul Patel had organised a cultural programme at the Vraj Hotel in Nala Sopara. The event was held in memory of Patel’s brother who died two years previously in a tragic accident. However, when the Shiv Sena, who were attending a street play nearby, got wind of the event, they presumed it was a Valentine’s Day celebration and challenged the participants. The "Sir John" group organized a repeat performance, attended by a larger crowd, at the same venue. After great public outrage, Bal Thackeray publicly apologized to the victims. ^*

On July 9, 2006, irate Shiv Sainiks blocked roads at Dadar in central Mumbai and damaged a police outpost after some unidentified miscreants allegedly desecrated the statue of Meenatai, the late wife of Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray.

Web References

External links

Shiv Sena web site