Thousands of men and women thronged the Shivaji Park to attend the Dussehra rally of Uddhav Thackeray on Wednesday, calling it their duty towards loyalty and legacy. Several of them came from outside Mumbai as well. The Uddhav faction’s annual rally took place at the iconic venue after a COVID-enforced gap of two years. It was also for the first time supporters had to choose between two leaders of the party—Thackeray or Eknath Shinde.

Since morning, supporters trickled into the ground. They came by private vehicles, local and long-distance trains. The area around the Dadar ground was filled with huge cutouts of Thackeray as well as Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, the head of the rebel group.