Balasaheb had visited party's ward office to warn his men against penalising Vaidya for selling vada pav outside Dadar station
The Brihanmumbai municipal corporation (BMC) has reportedly refused to renew the licence of the family of the man credited for making the first vada pav ever.
The late Ashok Vaidya, who is the inventor of the vada pav, used to sell his dish outside Dadar station until he died in 1998. His son Narendra continued his father's legacy, selling Mumbai's favourite snack on a thela outside Platform No 1 in Dadar West.
However, the BMC built a hawker's plaza near Dadar station a few years ago, and instructed all hawkers to shift to the new premises. Narendra refused, pointing out that he was a licensed hawker and had municipal permission to operate outside the station premises. "People step out of the station to have vada pav; but I cannot expect them to take a diversion and climb two floors of a hawker plaza to do that," he reasons.
After Narendra's resistance, the BMC said unless he shifted to the plaza, his licence would not be renewed. The BMC has now stationed officers outside Platform No 1. This means the stall now functions only for a couple of hours in the morning, during the BMC officer's noon-meal break and after 7 pm when the officers leave. "Our sales have dropped by 75 per cent. It's frustrating, but there is nothing we have been able to do," says Narendra.
Sena-connect
Narendra maintains that his father was close to Sena supremo Balasaheb Thackeray, who took it upon himself to visit the party's local ward office to warn his men against penalising Vaidya for selling vadas outside the station. He eventually got a municipal licence, which he continued renewing.
Vaidya also supplied vadas at Sena meetings chaired by former Maharashtra chief minister Manohar Joshi. In the mid 1990s, when the Sena popularity was at its crescendo in the city, Vaidya attended a rally held by Bal Thackeray, who told Vaidya to visit Matoshree after the Sena came to power.
"My father heeded Balasaheb's advice, but due to heavy security outside Matoshree and Shiv Sena bhavan, he never got a chance to meet him. My father had a dream to convert the thela we have into a big vada pav stall. Sadly, his dream was never fulfilled when he died in 1998," says Narendra.
Despite SMSes and a Facebook message, Shiv Sena youth leader Aaditya Thackeray failed to respond to dna queries.
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