Uddhav-Raj Thackeray reunion sparks speculations of alliance ahead of Maharashtra Day
Mumbai: The Shiv Sena UBT led by Uddhav Thackeray called for unity in the interest of Mumbai and Maharashtra with a post on Instagram that read, “The time has come to unite for Mumbai and Maharashtra. Shiv Sainiks are ready to protect Marathi pride.” This message has sparked strong speculation about a possible alliance between Uddhav’s Shiv Sena UBT and Raj Thackeray’s Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS), especially with Maharashtra Day approaching on May 1.
The post has fueled discussions on an alliance ahead of upcoming civic body elections. A senior leader from Shiv Sena UBT stated that the message was aimed at energizing party workers and prioritizing the welfare of Marathi people. However, any final decision regarding an alliance would be made by Uddhav and Raj themselves.
A source from MNS shared that while they would welcome Uddhav’s initiative to reconcile, they emphasized that forming an alliance was a serious matter requiring detailed discussions, rather than being decided through social media posts.
Both Uddhav and Raj are currently on family holidays abroad, with reports indicating that Raj will return to Mumbai by April 29 and Uddhav by May 4.
Last week, Raj Thackeray mentioned in an interview that there were no major issues between him and Uddhav, emphasizing that Maharashtra's welfare was more important than any personal differences. Uddhav also expressed a willingness to set aside minor issues for the greater good of the state.
The possible reconciliation has been welcomed by other political leaders, including NCP leader Supriya Sule and Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, both of whom have expressed hope that a collaboration would benefit Maharashtra.
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Two injuries, one DNF, a DQ as India end messy World Relays campaign
Gaborone (Botswana) (PTI): Amoj Jacob and Ragul Kumar got injured during the men's 4x400m and 4x100 races respectively as India ended their World Athletics Relays campaign in disappointment on the second day of competitions here on Sunday.
The Indian camp had high hopes of making the 2027 World Championships in the men's 4x400m relay but the team did not finish (DNF) the race as Jacob suffered cramps and pulled out of the race after taking the baton from the first leg runner Dharamveer Choudhary. Rajesh Ramesh and Vishal TK were to run in the third and fourth legs.
Those teams which could not qualify for the 2027 Beijing World Championships by reaching the final round of each of the six relay events on Saturday were given another chance in the second qualification round on Sunday.
The top two teams in each of the two heats (in all six relay events) booked the Beijing ticket on Sunday.
India will now have to try and qualify for the World Championships through the Top Lists of the World Athletics, which is a long and tedious process.
In the men's 4x100m race, third leg runner Ragul Kumar fell down the track after failing to hand over the baton inside the exchange zone to fourth leg runner Gurindervir Singh, which clearly showed the lack of coordination among the runners.
Harsh Santosh Raut and Animesh Kujur ran the first two legs.
The Indian quartet was disqualified and Kumar was seen being taken away from the Field of Play with the help of the volunteers.
It was a comedy of errors in the case of the women's 4x100m race, which saw the baton being dropped during an exchange between first leg runner Tamanna and second runner Nithya Gandhe, though the Indians finished the race in 53.09 seconds.
Gandhe started running quite a distance, but after realising that the baton was not in her hand, she turned and ran back to pick it up.
The only silver-lining for the Indian contingent was the national record time in the mixed 4x100m relay race, though the quartet of Ragul Kumar, Nithya Gandhe, Animesh Kujur and Sneha SS finished sixth in heat number two with a time of 41.35 seconds, bettering the previous national mark of 42.30 seconds set in March in Chandigarh.
The mixed 4x400m relay quartet of Theerthesh P Shetty, Kumari Saloni, Nihal William and Rashdeep Kaur ended at fifth in heat number one with a time of 3 minutes and 19.40 seconds.
On Saturday, all the five Indian relay teams had failed to make it to the respective final rounds and thus missed out on the 2027 World Championships berths.
