Jaidev Thackeray, the estranged son of the late Shiv Sena supremo Balasaheb Thackeray, claimed in the Bombay high court on Tuesday that Balasaheb used to say that he (Jaidev) was Balasaheb's rightful
Jaidev Thackeray, the estranged son of the late Shiv Sena supremo Balasaheb Thackeray, claimed in the Bombay high court on Tuesday that Balasaheb used to say that he (Jaidev) was Balasaheb's rightful political heir. Jaidev added while deposing before the court that he, nonetheless, was not interested in politics since his views about the subject differed from those of his father.
“After my grandfather's death in 1973, I started working closely with Balasaheb. That's why he saw me as his natural political heir,” Jaidev said. He added: “I was uncomfortable about the requirements of active politics, since one has to criticise other political people and speak harshly about them even if they are good friends of his. My father used to criticise people who were close to him and I was not comfortable with such political requirements.”
When Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray's counsel, Rohit Kapadia, asked Jaidev whether Balasaheb had stopped teaching him the nitty-gritties of politics because of his lack of interest in the subject, Jaidev answered: “Balasaheb never taught me political lessons as if I were a student, but I was very close to him and used to keenly observe his skills.”
A single bench of the HC, headed by Justice Gautam Patel, is hearing a testamentary suit of the Thackeray family's, in which Jaidev has questioned the validity of Balasaheb's will.
Jaidev said that he had very close relations with Balasaheb, which is why when his mother and father decided upon expanding Matoshree, the Thackerays' residence, they first shared the idea with him, before speaking to Bindu Madhav and Uddhav.
Jaidev said: “In 1991, Bindu Madhav started living separately. That hurt my mother and thus she and Balasaheb decided to expand Matoshree so that everybody could stay together.” He added that Madhav had refused to return to Matoshree since he was happy in his own house and with his business. Madhav had even said that he did not want any room to be kept free for him in Matoshree, Jaidev said.
“Therefore, I was living on the first floor and Balasaheb and Maa saheb on the second floor, while Uddhav started living on the third floor,” he added.
Jaidev also told the court that after 2003, Uddhav's influence over the family started increasing and, in 2005, he removed Jaidev's name from the ration card for Matoshree.
Justice Patel will continue to hear Jaidev's testimony on Wednesday.
