Following the exodus of six of its nine MPs, the Shiv Sena (UBT) on Tuesday suffered yet another setback after Aaditya Thackeray’s close aide and MLC Sachin Ahir crossed over to the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena. He also filed his nomination as the Sena candidate for the post of Deputy Chairman of the Legislative Council.
An influential figure in Mumbai politics for over two decades, Ahir has played a key role in shaping the political equations in the Worli Assembly constituency, currently represented by Aaditya Thackeray.
Born on March 21, 1972, Ahir began his public life through his uncle, gangster-turned-politician Arun Gawli, and Mumbai’s labour union movement.
In 1993, Ahir became associated with the Rashtriya Mill Mazdoor Sangh, one of Mumbai’s prominent labour organisations. He served as its secretary before later becoming its president.
In 1996, he joined the Maharashtra Rajya Rashtriya Kamgar Sangh. During this period, he worked with unions representing workers at Mazagon Dock and Mahindra & Mahindra. His involvement in wage negotiations, labour settlements and worker mobilisation helped him build considerable influence in Mumbai’s traditional mill workers’ belt, particularly in central Mumbai and Worli.
Mainstream politics
Ahir entered mainstream politics in 1999 when he joined the undivided NCP, a party with which he remained associated for nearly two decades. He won his first Assembly election from the Worli constituency that year and retained the seat in 2004 and 2009.
In 2009, he was inducted into the Congress-NCP government led by Prithviraj Chavan as Minister of State, handling key portfolios such as Housing, Industries and Environment.
After losing the 2014 Assembly election to the undivided Shiv Sena’s Sunil Shinde, Ahir’s influence within the NCP gradually declined.
Switch to Sena and Aaditya aide
On July 26, 2019, months ahead of the Assembly elections, Ahir quit the NCP and joined the then undivided Shiv Sena.
His induction was seen as a politically significant move, as the Sena was preparing to field Aaditya from the Worli seat, marking the first direct election contested by a member of the Thackeray family.
With his strong organisational network and influence in the constituency, Ahir played a crucial role in mobilising support for Aaditya, who went on to win the seat by more than 67,000 votes.
Even during the 2024 Assembly elections, when Aaditya faced a stiff challenge from Shiv Sena’s Milind Deora and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) leader Sandeep Deshpande, Sena (UBT) leaders privately credited Ahir with playing an important organisational role in helping the Uddhav camp retain the Worli seat.
Rise in Sena
Ahir’s stature within the undivided Shiv Sena grew further after the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government led by Uddhav Thackeray came to power in 2019.
Days before Eknath Shinde’s rebellion in 2022, Ahir was elected to the Council and remained with the Uddhav camp following the split.
He was seen as one of the leaders who helped manage the Sena (UBT) organisation in Worli and remained closely associated with Aaditya Thackeray’s political network in Mumbai.
The Gawli connect
Ahir has long been a familiar face in Mumbai’s social and cultural circles. Along with his wife, he runs the Shri Sankalp Pratishthan, an organisation known for hosting one of Mumbai’s prominent Dahi Handi celebrations and undertaking several local social initiatives.
Ahir is the son of Ashalata, Gawli’s sister. His father, Mohan Bania, popularly known as Ahir, worked with Air India.