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By:

Abhijit Mulye

21 August 2024 at 4:59:11 pm

Fadnavis reins in Sena’s Marathi push

AI generated image Mumbai: The ruling Mahayuti coalition in Maharashtra is witnessing a delicate political balancing act, with Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis increasingly overriding key decisions of alliance partners, particularly the Shiv Sena, while simultaneously attempting to placate them on other fronts. The tension within the alliance came to the fore on Thursday when Fadnavis stepped in to dilute a controversial mandate enforced by Shiv Sena Transport Minister Pratap Sarnaik, which...

Fadnavis reins in Sena’s Marathi push

AI generated image Mumbai: The ruling Mahayuti coalition in Maharashtra is witnessing a delicate political balancing act, with Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis increasingly overriding key decisions of alliance partners, particularly the Shiv Sena, while simultaneously attempting to placate them on other fronts. The tension within the alliance came to the fore on Thursday when Fadnavis stepped in to dilute a controversial mandate enforced by Shiv Sena Transport Minister Pratap Sarnaik, which required auto-rickshaw and taxi drivers in Mumbai to possess basic Marathi language proficiency. The Transport Department’s enforcement drive, which threatened non-Marathi-speaking drivers with suspension or cancellation of their licences, sparked outrage among North Indian drivers who form a sizeable section of the public transport workforce in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR). Protests brought parts of Mumbai, including Kandivali and Malad, to a standstill. Recognising the potential electoral fallout, Fadnavis intervened, saying drivers need not be “experts” in Marathi. He also extended the grace period for drivers to acquire a working knowledge of the language to one year, effectively diluting Sarnaik’s hardline stance. Fadnavis announced the decision after a delegation of transport operators met him. The episode highlights the conflicting political compulsions of the Mahayuti partners. Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena is keen to pursue a pro-Marathi, “sons of the soil” agenda to consolidate its traditional voter base and counter the rival Shiv Sena (UBT) faction led by Uddhav Thackeray. The BJP, however, relies heavily on North Indian and migrant voters in the MMR, particularly as crucial civic and state elections approach. Any aggressive regional policy that alienates this constituency could have electoral consequences for the party. The Marathi language issue is not an isolated instance of Fadnavis stepping in to override decisions associated with the Shiv Sena. It fits into a broader pattern of the chief minister’s administration reviewing or reversing several initiatives of the previous government headed by Shinde. In April 2026, the BJP-led Environment Department, headed by Minister Pankaja Munde, scrapped 14 lake conservation projects, 11 of which had been cleared during Shinde’s tenure, and ordered recovery of more than Rs 73 crore. The Fadnavis government has also modified several initiatives introduced by the previous regime. In January 2025, it altered Shinde’s three-course school meal plan, placing the responsibility on local school management committees to raise funds for sweet dishes. In April 2025, the government scrapped the ‘One State, One Uniform’ policy for schools. A Rs 3,200-crore tender for mechanised housekeeping services at government hospitals, issued under the Shinde government, was also stayed. Yet, Fadnavis remains conscious of the need to preserve the fragile alliance. To manage growing resentment within the Sena, he has adopted what can be described as a ‘blow hot, blow cold’ approach — overriding decisions when they clash with the BJP’s broader political interests while offering political concessions on other fronts. One such move was the recent appointment of Shiv Sena leader Bharat Gogawale as Guardian Minister of the politically important Raigad district, ending a 19-month-long tussle over the post. At the same time, the Mahayuti government recently reduced the powers exercised by Guardian Ministers over District Planning Committee (DPC) funds, directing that 70 per cent of the funds be allocated directly to local MLAs. The move is aimed at reducing the concentration of financial powers with individual ministers. As the Mahayuti navigates these competing interests, Fadnavis has also instructed alliance partners to resolve disputes internally and avoid public sparring. However, the latest confrontation over the Marathi language requirement underscores the limits of that arrangement. While Fadnavis continues to use his authority to protect the BJP’s broader electoral interests, the Shiv Sena remains under pressure to assert its regional identity and distinguish itself from the Thackeray faction. With elections approaching, balancing these competing political priorities is likely to remain one of the biggest challenges for the Mahayuti government.

'Reviving Kolkata necessary to bridge economic divide'

Mumbai: India's most pressing economic imbalance is not the widely debated north-south gap, but a stark east-west divide. According to Sanjeev Sanyal, a member of the Prime Minister’s Economic Advisory Council, rectifying this massive disparity hinges almost entirely on the revival of one city: Kolkata. Speaking on the relative economic performance of Indian states, Sanyal emphasized that restoring Kolkata to its former glory as a premier industrial and financial hub is no longer just a regional aspiration, but an urgent national necessity. If India aims to sustain a robust growth trajectory and realize the vision of a "Viksit Bharat" by 2047, Kolkata must step up to serve as the anchor engine for the entire eastern seaboard.


The history of India’s economic growth demonstrates that urban centers act as the true spine of regional development. In the early 1960s, West Bengal was among the top five economic contributors in the country. Alongside states like Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, and Bihar, it helped generate more than half of the national GDP. During this era, Kolkata stood as an industrial colossus, arguably more important commercially than Mumbai, Sanyal said giving growth statistics.


He furthermore pointed out that the region's entrepreneurial spirit dates back centuries. He noted that the original Swadeshi movement of 1905 was heavily rooted in modernization and enterprise. Yet, tragically, this rich culture of industry vanished within just fifty years.


Economic Decline

The economic decline of West Bengal has been one of the most visible and disappointing trajectories in India’s modern history. Sanyal candidly remarked that Kolkata did not merely die; it was "murdered." The state's share of the national economy plummeted from around eleven percent after Partition to a mere five and a half percent today.


This steady downward spiral, particularly exacerbated by a severe phase of de-industrialization starting in the 1980s, crippled the broader eastern region. Because Kolkata stopped functioning as a heavyweight economic driver, the entire east suffered. The collateral damage extended well beyond manufacturing, leading to a corresponding degradation of the city's celebrated cultural and educational institutions. This systemic decay ultimately triggered a massive and continuous flight of young, ambitious talent away from Bengal.


This stagnation stands in sharp contrast to the economic boom witnessed in the western and southern parts of the country following the 1991 liberalization. States like Maharashtra maintained steady dominance, while Gujarat transformed significantly over the last twenty-five years to boast a per capita income well above the national average.


Southern states, heavily anchored by booming urban centers in Telangana, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu, also surged far ahead. Even historically poorer eastern states like Odisha managed to drastically improve their standing through consistent policy efforts, eventually overtaking West Bengal in relative per capita performance.


The glaring lesson across the nation is that major urban hubs are the vital engines that generate high growth, an asset eastern India has sorely lacked due to Kolkata's prolonged dormancy.


India’s Gateway

To bridge this crucial east-west divide, Sanyal argues that Kolkata must be rebuilt as India's gateway to Southeast Asia. The city needs to plug the eastern region deeply into global supply chains through enhanced infrastructure, industrial growth, and export-oriented development. Recent electoral shifts and changing political dynamics in West Bengal have sparked a renewed focus on the state's economic future.


With a changing environment that Sanyal describes as possessing a pro-growth philosophy for the first time in two generations, there is finally a tangible hope for revival. Rebuilding Kolkata's industrial and financial strength must be treated as a critical national project, essential for getting the eastern half of India firing on all cylinders once again.

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