Uddhav Thackeray birthday: The political journey of the former Maharashtra CM

Uddhav Thackeray. File Photo.

Uddhav Thackeray, born into a Marathi family on 27th July 1960, was the youngest son of politician Bal Thackeray and Meena Thackeray. He pursued his schooling at Balmohan Vidyamandir and graduated from Sir J.J. Institute of Applied Art with a major in photography.

His political journey began in 2002 when he took charge as the campaign incharge of Shiv Sena in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation elections, contributing to the party's success. In 2003, he was appointed as the working president of Shiv Sena. In 2006, he assumed the role of chief editor of the party's Marathi-language newspaper Saamana, resigning in 2019 before becoming Maharashtra's chief minister.

During his leadership, Shiv Sena faced a split when his cousin Raj Thackeray formed the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena in 2006. After Bal Thackeray's demise in 2012, Uddhav took over as the party president, and in 2013, under his guidance, Shiv Sena joined the NDA government in Maharashtra in 2014.

In 2019, Shiv Sena left the NDA and joined the UPA, forming the Maha Vikas Aghadi alliance to lead the Maharashtra government, with Uddhav Thackeray as the chief minister. In 2022, he cited betrayal by the BJP as the reason for leaving the NDA and criticized the BJP's political convenience in handling allies.

Despite never holding a constitutional post initially, he took the oath as the 18th Chief Minister of Maharashtra on 28th November 2019 after being elected as the president of the Maha Vikas Aghadi coalition.

Thackeray gained popularity as a Chief Minister and committed to leading Maharashtra's efforts against climate change, aiming for a carbon-neutral Mumbai by 2050, twenty years ahead of India's national target.

However, his leadership faced challenges within Shiv Sena. A leadership dispute arose when Eknath Shinde established the government in Maharashtra without Uddhav Thackeray's involvement, leading to a legal battle and recognition of Shinde's faction as the legitimate Shiv Sena party by the Election Commission.

Moreover, Thackeray oversaw changes to the party's constitution in 2018, which were deemed undemocratic by the Election Commission, raising concerns about centralized control within the party.

Most recently, Eknath Shinde's bid to re-establish an alliance with the BJP challenged Uddhav Thackeray's leadership, leading to his resignation as Chief Minister. After a legal battle, the Election Commission recognized Shinde's faction as the legitimate Shiv Sena party, ultimately changing the party's leadership dynamics.