Sena-MNS tussle jams Dadar

While the MNS claims it is trying to decongest the area by moving hawkers into a free-of-cost pandal, the Sena is firm about keeping them where they are

Mumbai, 02/09/2016: Traffic jam at dadar during Ganpati festival.

Photo: Vijay Bate.

The political tussle between the Shiv Sena and the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) is apparently behind the unending saga of traffic snarls and hawker-encroached footpaths in Dadar, arguably Mumbai’s busiest area. Solutions to these are far from being resolved. The parties are led by estranged Thackeray cousins Uddhav and Raj respectively.

Hawkers have always been a congestion factor in Dadar. With two days to go for the annual 10-day Ganapati festival, a large number of them have taken over the road and footpaths, selling Ganesha idols and decorative items among other articles.

Dadar’s MNS corporator Sudhir Jadhav has erected a 10,000-sq.ft. pandal at Antony Desilva School for hawkers to shift into, but is finding no takers. The pandal is fitted with a waterproof roof, tables and chairs, and is available free of cost to hawkers in and around Dadar station.

Mr. Jadhav said, “Following the Supreme Court order, either the police or the civic administration should take action and move hawkers off roads and footpaths, but neither of them seem to be doing their duty. Finally, I built the pandal with my own money and asked the administration to ensure hawkers are moved in so the roads are decongested. I received no response.”

He alleged that the Shiv Sena, which is in power in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), is pressurising the civic administration to not move the hawkers. “They don’t want to give any credit to me. I think they should not politicise civic issues, especially something like traffic jams which inconvenience Mumbaikars,” he said.

Sada Sarvankar, the Sena MLA from Dadar, rubbished Mr. Jadhav’s claims saying the MNS wanted to move out poor Marathi youth from the vicinity of Dadar station to benefit big traders selling items used in the Ganapati festival. “I held meetings with those hawkers. They have been coming to this place for many years, and MNS is trying to move them only to benefit big shopkeepers,” Mr. Sarvankar said.

The tussle between the parties has inhibited any action by the civic administration and the police, leaving residents and commuters to contend with the growing menace of traffic jams and pollution.

Interestingly, Dadar has been the hub of activities for the Sena and the MNS, with both parties vying for dominance. In the 2012 civic polls, the MNS surprised the Sena by winning all seven corporation wards. However, the Sena bounced back in the 2014 Lok Sabha and Assembly elections and won both convincingly.

With elections to the BMC likely to be held in February 2017, both parties are unwilling to miss out on an opportunity to gain political mileage. The civic administration, however, refuted all allegations levelled by Mr. Jadhav. Ramakant Biradar, Ward Officer, G-North, said, “Even today, we held a meeting with the hawkers and the police. We tried to convince hawkers to shift to the pandal, but they refused. This being the Ganesh festival, we cannot use coercive action. The corporator’s [Mr. Jadhav’s] allegations are absolutely untrue.”