IANS-CVoter National Mood Tracker: Thackeray or Shinde; Public opinion divided on who heads the real Shiv Sena

New Delhi: The political upheaval in Maharashtra continues as the number and strength of the rebel camp of Shiv Sena led by Eknath Shinde grew stronger.

Shinde on Friday claimed that he has support of over 50 MLAs and released a video of 42 legislators posing for the camera. Most of the legislators in the video are from Shiv Sena and currently camped in Guwahati. Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, struggling to dodge the political crisis and save Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government, has asked for disqualification of several rebel MLAs of Shiv Sena.

On Wednesday, Thackeray had made an emotional appeal to the rebel MLAs in his address to the state.

Senior Shiv Sena leader and party spokesperson Sanjay Raut even suggested that party will consider breaking away from the MVA alliance if all the rebel MLAs say so.

Meanwhile, the alliance partners of MVA, the Congress and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), have assured support to Thackeray till the last moment in the current political crisis.

The MVA government is headed by Shiv Sena having 55 MLAs. NCP with 53 legislators and the Congress party having 44 MLAs are the alliance partners in the state government. Maharashtra legislative Assembly has a strength of 288 members.

Amidst the political drama in Maharashtra, CVoter-IndiaTracker conducted a countrywide survey for IANS to know people’s opinion about the revolt in Shiv Sena and leadership crisis in the party.

The survey revealed that Uddhav Thackeray’s image as undisputed leader of Shiv Sena has been dented in people’s views after Shinde’s raising the flag of revolt against the heir of Balasaheb Thackery, the founder of the party.

During the survey, people were divided in their views on who among Uddhav Thackeray and Shinde is heading the real Shiv Sena.

According to the survey data, while 53 per cent respondents believed that Uddhav Thackeray continues to be the chief of real Shiv Sena, 47 per cent opined that leadership of the real Shiv Sena has now gone in the hands of Shinde.

Predictably, political polarisation was evident in the views of NDA and opposition supporters on the issue.

As per the survey data, while 61 per cent opposition voters asserted that Uddhav Thackeray continues to be the boss of the real Shiv Sena, almost 58 per cent NDA voters said that Shinde is the new head of the party.

The survey highlighted differences in the opinion of different social groups about the leadership of Shiv Sena in the wake of rebellion in the party.

According to the survey data, while majority of Scheduled Castes (SC), 67 per cent, and 73 per cent Muslim respondents said that Uddhav Thackeray is still the undisputed supremo of the real Shiv Sena, majority of Upper Caste Hindus (UCH), 60 per cent, believe that Shinde has snatched the leadership.

During the survey, views of Scheduled Tribes (ST) and Other Backward Classes (OBC) communities were divided on the issue.

As per the survey data, while 50 per cent of ST respondents said Uddhav Thackeray continues to be head of the party, 50 per cent voters from the community opined that Shinde has replaced him and has taken over the reins.

Similarly, while 47 per cent OBC respondents think that Uddhav Thackeray is still the chief of the real Shiv Sena, 53 per cent of them asserted that change in leadership has taken place and Shinde is the new boss.

–IANS