The Maharashtra government has reconstituted the Balasaheb Thackeray National Memorial Public Trust, appointing Shiv Sena (UBT) head and former Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray as its chairman. The memorial of Shiv Sena founder late Bal Thackeray is being constructed at the mayor's bungalow site at Shivaji Park in Mumbai's Dadar area. The government issued a notification on Saturday appointing Bal Thackeray's son Uddhav Thackeray, along with four other members, to the trust, which is overseeing the memorial's construction. According to the Government Resolution (GR) issued by the General Administration Department, former minister Subhash Desai has been appointed as secretary of the trust, while Uddhav Thackeray's Aaditya Thackeray, who is an MLA and former minister, has been named as a member. The trust will also have MLA Parag Alvani and former legislator Shishir Shinde as members.
Five ex officio members will also be part of the trust - the chief secretary of Maharashtra, principal secretary (urban development-II), principal secretary (law and judiciary), Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation commissioner, and two seats reserved for members to be elected from the general body. The tenure of the chairman and members Subhash Desai and Aaditya Thackeray will be for five years, while Alvani and Shinde will serve for three years. The government has also authorised Desai to register the changes in the trust's composition with the charity commissioner under the Bombay Public Trusts Act, 1950 and the Co-operative Societies Registration Act, 1960. The public trust was originally established through a GR on September 27, 2016, with Uddhav Thackeray as chairman. He resigned from the post on November 25, 2019, after the initial three-year term of the trust members also expired, necessitating fresh appointments. Later, Aaditya Thackeray was appointed as the chairman of the trust. The five-year term of the trust members, including Aaditya Thackeray as chairman (except ex officio members), ended on March 11, 2025.