End of an Era

Sena Supremo Still Brings the City to a Standstill

A mixed set of memories of joys of unexpected holidays in the past because of Bandhs and also frustration of cancelled plans. If only it were not so fundamentalist, so much about "Me Marathi", so much against North Indians, it would have been an apt opposition party with measured nuisance value. Even a Bharat Bandh is not really a bandh in Bombay unless it is supported by the Sena. 

A Short excerpt from today's ET: 

"There are two words any Mumbaikar learns to respond to instantly : Sena Bandh.

Whether formally declared by Bal Thackeray,the Sena supremo,or taken out apparently spontaneously in response to something momentous in his life (the death of his wife,threats to arrest him,or as we have seen in the last few days, his declining heath), the implication is clear trains will be stopped,cars stoned,buses burned, shop windows broken, so you had really best be safe at home. Mumbaikars feelings about this are complicated. There is apprehension, of course, since no one wants to be caught in the chaos, and possibly irritation at the time lost, plans disrupted and workdays wasted. Yet, along with that is a certain schoolkids sense of satisfaction at an unexpected day off. Till recently at least, Sena Bandh was the excuse no employer could contest, even in a hardworking city like Mumbai. And unlike festival holidays, which had their own pressures of rituals and visits, a Sena Bandh was a totally relaxed and peaceful day at home.It is true that in the early years of the Sena, there was always apprehension at the scale of violence,which turned against different targets.During the agitation against south Indians, Udupi restaurants were attacked and burned,and there was also the horror of the anti-Muslim riots in 1993.Yet, as the Sena got increasingly established,the bandhs took on a ritualistic aspect that was high on strong rhetoric but reassuringly limited in actual violence and disruption. The pattern would start early in the morning with party workers lying on tracks to stop trains, and this, in a city so dependent on long distance commutes,was enough to send people home. Shiv Sena shakha workers would fan out in their neighbourhoods and warn shops,which would quickly down shutters. A token bus was usually burned,but in recent years the focus has been more on taxis that tend to be driven by north Indian migrants,who are acceptable targets for the Sena."