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By:

Quaid Najmi

4 January 2025 at 3:26:24 pm

Strange bedfellows

BJP hugs Congress, AIMIM; panics after uproar Thane : Eyebrows were singed and blood pressures spiked when the Bharatiya Janata Party suddenly decided to hug its “sworn enemies” in Ambernath (Thane), and in Akot (Akola) – after the December 20 municipal council polls there.   The BJP became snug under its saffron blanket with the Congress and Ajit Pawar’s Nationalist Congress Party – all to politically leave the Mahayuti ally, Shiv Sena led by Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, out in the...

Strange bedfellows

BJP hugs Congress, AIMIM; panics after uproar Thane : Eyebrows were singed and blood pressures spiked when the Bharatiya Janata Party suddenly decided to hug its “sworn enemies” in Ambernath (Thane), and in Akot (Akola) – after the December 20 municipal council polls there.   The BJP became snug under its saffron blanket with the Congress and Ajit Pawar’s Nationalist Congress Party – all to politically leave the Mahayuti ally, Shiv Sena led by Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, out in the cold.   Similarly in Akot, the BJP cozied up under the All India Majlis-E-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM)'s green quilt, without a shred of guilt, to shoo off the Congress-Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi and others from bagging the civic body.   In Ambernath, the Shiv Sena had emerged as the single-largest party with 27 seats in the 60-Ward house, and in Akot, the BJP achieved the same feat with 11 seats in the 35-Ward house.   Predictably, leaders across these parties rushed to douze the hayfires. A shaken Congress state chief Harshwardhan Sapkal suspended local leaders in Ambernath, including the local party chief Pradeep Patil, the executive committee and around a dozen elected municipal councillors.   A dazed AIMIM state chief Imtiaz Jaleel, declared there was “no question of joining hands with the BJP”, and added grimly: “We have sought a report from the local party leaders, and after getting all details, we shall initiate appropriate disciplinary action,” a grim Jaleel said.   Smarting under red-hot chilli criticism flung by Shiv Sena (UBT)’s Sanjay Raut and Aam Aadmi Party’s Preeti Sharma-Menon, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis shot out an earful to the local party leaders in Ambernath and Akot.   “We shall not tolerate the alliances with Congress and AIMIM. These partnerships must be broken. If the local (BJP) units have worked out such deals, they are wrong and violate norms. We shall take stringent action against them,” warned Fadnavis. Later, BJP State President Ravindra Chavan slapped a notice on the Akot party units seeking an explanation.   Ideological Somersaults Since 2019, the state has witnessed many such brazen ideological somersaults that have left political parties and voters shocked and awed.   It started when the (undivided) Shiv Sena joined the Congress and (united) NCP to form the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) which ruled the state for two-and-half years.   In the current civic elections season, even the MVA has fractured with Congress going solo or with local allies like Prakash Ambedkar’s Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi, while the Shiv Sena (UBT) and NCP (SP) have embraced the once-untouchable MNS.   Adding to this is the flurry of local leaders-activists hopping parties, leaving voters bemused and bewildered, even as the parties fumbled to save their ideological credibility.   Ambernath: Shoving out the winner Indulging in political creativity, the BJP, Congress and NCP floated the Ambernath City Development Front, uniting the BJP, Congress and NCP, intended to keep the Shiv Sena out of power at all costs.   Ambernath falls in the Kalyan Lok Sabha seat of Dr Shrikant Shinde, son of Deputy CM Eknath Shinde, who is already at loggerheads with BJP state chief Ravindra Chavan, hailing from Dombivali town, also in Thane district. BJP-Shiv Sena fought against each other in the civic polls last month.   In the 59-member Ambernath Municipal Council, the Shiv Sena won 23 seats, BJP 16, Congress 12 and NCP four. BJP’s Tejashree Karanjule was elected president through direct polls. Post-alliance, the BJP-Congress-NCP touched 32 seats, edging out the Shiv Sena which in its undivided form had ruled here for almost 35 years.     Akot: Bulldozing to grab power The BJP, AIMIM formed the Akot Vikas Manch, which included Shiv Sena, Shiv Sena (UBT), NCP and NCP (SP) and Prahar Janshakti Party to wrest the 35-member house from potential claimants.   The BJP won 11 and AIMIM five, and along with others, the AVM claimed a majority with 25 municipal councillors, and the Congress, VBA floundered with just 8 seats.   The AVM was formally registered with the SEC. In the polls, BJP’s Maya Dhule was elected mayor defeating AIMIM’s Firozabi S. Rana.

Ajit Pawar, Muralidhar Mohol at war

The Mahayuti coalition partners have turned into bitter rivals in the municipal fight for Pune and western Maharashtra

Pune: An open, and in some places covert, conflict is underway between BJP leader and Union Minister of State Muralidhar Mohol and Nationalist Congress Party president and Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, for dominance over cooperative institutions and local self-governing bodies in western Maharashtra.


A fierce exchange of accusations and counter-accusations between Mohol and Pawar has unfolded during the Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad municipal corporation election campaigns. In the first phase of the campaign, Mohol targeted Ajit Pawar, alleging that his party had given tickets to candidates with criminal backgrounds. Ajit Pawar responded strongly, saying, “Check the list of candidates fielded by the BJP in the last 15 years, and you will understand how much truth there is in the BJP's allegations and who has actually given tickets to criminals.”


Pawar also demanded an inquiry into who helped a person from Pune flee abroad and obtain a passport. He escalated matters further, demanding an inquiry into how a Pune-based figure had allegedly fled abroad and secured a passport - an insinuation aimed squarely at the BJP’s local power structure. At rallies he has also accused the BJP of presiding over seven years of developmental inertia in Pune, dismissing the party as a “triumvirate of power brokers.”


Except for BJP state president Ravindra Chavan, other local leaders have avoided responding to Pawar. Local leaders have taken the stance that Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis will respond. One former BJP MP said, “We will be coming together after the municipal elections anyway, so why respond?”


Widening Schism

This conflict between Pawar and Mohol has been ongoing since the 2024 Lok Sabha election. Ajit’s wife, Sunetra Pawar lost the Baramati Lok Sabha seat to Supriya Sule. Traditional BJP voters did not vote for Ajit Pawar’s party. This incident put both the BJP and the NCP on alert. BJP leaders realized that their alliance had not resonated with the voters. Ajit Pawar understood that while he had a good rapport with BJP leaders, BJP voters were not shifting their allegiance to him.


His party’s platforms prominently feature the late Yashwantrao Chavan, a Congress patriarch and invokes the legacy of Phule, Shahu and Ambedkar (icons of social reform) rather than Hindutva. This deliberate signalling is to reassure his traditional constituency in western Maharashtra where the Pawars have dominated politics and cooperative institutions for decades across Pune, Sangli, Satara, Kolhapur and Solapur.


The BJP wants to establish its party on a firm footing in western Maharashtra. The BJP has been trying to achieve this for several years. Senior leader Sharad Pawar, and consequently Ajit Pawar, dominate the politics and some cooperative institutions in the Pune, Sangli, Satara, Kolhapur, and Solapur districts of Western Maharashtra. The BJP's strategy is to take control of these institutions or gain a foothold in them. Recognizing that it is necessary to stop Ajit Pawar for this purpose, the BJP has formulated a complementary strategy.


Murlidhar Mohol was given the responsibility of the party in Western Maharashtra. After Mohol was elected to the Lok Sabha, he was given the post of Minister of State for Cooperation. In the central government, the cabinet ministership of the Cooperation department is held by Amit Shah. Through Mohol, Amit Shah has kept his focus on Western Maharashtra. The party has given Mohol the 'charge' of Pune city and district. Therefore, the Mohol-Pawar conflict has become inevitable for maintaining dominance. Ward boundaries were drawn for the municipal corporation elections. The Congress alleged that BJP leaders interfered in the administration while drawing these boundaries. Expressing dissatisfaction with the ward boundaries, Ajit Pawar expressed his displeasure with the BJP’s ‘administrators.’ Subsequently, Mohol challenged Pawar’s presidency in the wrestling association. After the Chief Minister intervened, the presidential election was averted and Mohol was given the post of senior vice-president.


Battle For Dominance

Seeing signs of achieving good success through the alliance with Sharad Pawar's party in Pune city, Ajit Pawar became more aggressive. So, the BJP wants to maintain its dominance in Pune, and Mohol is working towards this goal, with the party also supporting him. Ajit Pawar is striving to regain control of the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation, and in this effort, he is naturally clashing with the BJP and Mohol.


The Chief Minister is stating that the proposed Purandar airport will be beneficial for farmers and industrialists in Western Maharashtra for exporting goods, and in a way, he is trying to appease young farmers by implementing this airport project. This is an ambitious project for the BJP. The BJP wants to maintain its hold on the municipal corporation for this project and the development around it.


Considering the social situation in Western Maharashtra, a political leader opined that Sharad Pawar's leadership is deeply rooted, and the youth here are attracted to Ajit Pawar. Mohol is relatively new to Western Maharashtra. However, the BJP has chosen him keeping the next 10-15 years in mind. It seems that the BJP’s senior leaders have decided on a long-term strategy to provide Mohol with all-out support.


What looks like a local spat is thus something larger - a test of whether the BJP can finally crack western Maharashtra’s cooperative fortress, and whether Ajit Pawar can prove that his rebellion has yielded more than ministerial office.

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