Mumbai: The ruling alliance in Maharashtra is witnessing yet another formidable tremor as simmering tensions between the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena threaten to boil over ahead of the crucial Legislative Council elections. The rift was blown wide open on Tuesday when Shinde, the Deputy Chief Minister, noticeably skipped the state cabinet meeting. While his office quickly attributed the absence to close family rituals and maintained that it occurred with the prior consent of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, political circles are buzzing with a vastly different interpretation. This absence is widely viewed as a calculated message of displeasure, arriving directly on the heels of a massive rebellion across six of the 17 constituencies heading to the polls for the Upper House of the state legislature. The prevailing unease within the coalition was forcefully articulated just a day earlier by senior Shiv Sena leader Abdul Sattar. On Monday, Sattar openly accused the BJP of systematically attempting to finish off his party. Highlighting the growing friction over seat-sharing arrangements for the upcoming polls, Sattar asserted that the BJP was operating with a corrosive agenda to politically marginalise its regional ally. In a swift response, a visibly concerned Shinde immediately summoned Sattar to Mumbai. However, the optics of the ensuing journey only added more fuel to the fire. On Tuesday, enroute to the state capital via the Samruddhi corridor, Sattar held an impromptu meeting with Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Ambadas Danve. This rendezvous lent substantial credence to the swirling speculations regarding a potential merger of the estranged Shiv Sena factions. Shinde squarely denied any possibility of a retreat to the Uddhav Thackeray fold. He stated that his party remains the true torchbearer of the Hindutva ideology and the original roadmap laid down by late party patriarch Balasaheb Thackeray. As Maharashtra braces for the legislative council elections, the structural integrity of the ruling alliance is under severe scrutiny.
Comments