Ever since Jaidev Thackeray, son of Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray, announced his intention to join the Sharad Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party, there are many questions being asked in political circles.
Why did Jaidev make the announcement after the Congress-NCP came to power? Would the Congress object if he joined the NCP, as he was once a member of the Shiv Sena?
Even as the rumblings created by the announcement are slowly dying down, there is a debate going on within the NCP about his usefulness to the party.
While some feel that Jaidev has many qualities of his father, that he is very talented and that 'he was sidelined by the Sena chief because of his bad habits', others doubt he can make any contribution to the party, as he does not enjoy mass support.
Sources in the NCP said, "Jaidev can be beneficial only if he can speak against the Sena chief and brother Uddhav Thackeray." Uddhav is the executive president of the Sena.
However, Jaidev told rediff.com that he will not attack Bal Thackeray or his brother. "I will not speak a word against saheb (Bal Thackeray). Uddhav and [cousin] Raj Thackeray are my younger brothers and I love them. I will not speak against them either."
Jaidev has had differences with his father for a long time and has been staying separately since 1995.
So why is he mulling joining the NCP? "I admire Sharad Pawar very much, I like his way of functioning." However, he also said he is yet to decide on joining the party. "Let the Vilasrao Deshmukh ministry be formed. I will take a final decision after that," he said.
Sources said that Jaidev's entry into the NCP is probably being facilitated by party leader and former deputy chief minister Chhagan Bhujbal. They point out that Bhujbal has a good relationship with Bal Thackeray's sons.
Jaidev claims that he had voluntarily kept himself away from politics. "I had always worked for the common man as a party worker. I worked for the Sena till 1995. I wanted to work for the common man being in the Shiv Sena without taking any post in the party. But the party is not responsive to my wishes. People surrounding my family members are not good.
"But some people in the Shiv Sena did not like my way of functioning. So I decided to distance myself from them. But now I want to work for the poor, through a political platform," he said.
Some feel that Jaidev's move to join the NCP may help the NCP harm the Shiv Sena's prospects in elections to the Mumbai civic corporation, which has been governed by the Shiv Sena for a long time now.
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