top of page

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.

The Musk Mutiny

Elon Musk has broken up with President Trump to form a political party of his own. But can Silicon Valley populism fix Washington’s dysfunction or worsen it?

The world’s richest man has declared political independence. Elon Musk, no stranger to provocation or reinvention, announced the formation of the ‘America Party’ after ending his brief but high-profile association with the Trump administration. The fallout came swiftly after President Donald Trump signed into law a sweeping spending and tax bill that Musk had condemned as “insane and destructive.”


For months, their political courtship had held Washington in thrall. Musk, appointed head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) - a typically irreverent acronym in the Muskian mould - was tasked with slashing federal bureaucracy and pushing tech-forward reforms. But the White House’s July 4 bill, a firework display of largesse, marked the end. Musk launched an online poll on Independence Day asking whether he should start a new political party. By the next morning, with two-thirds of respondents saying yes, he declared the America Party born.


History is strewn with wealthy men who tried to upend American politics. H. Ross Perot’s 1992 Reform Party bid garnered 19 percent of the vote, proving that outsider candidates could resonate with an electorate jaded by partisanship. Theodore Roosevelt, after his falling out with the Republican machine in 1912, founded the Progressive ‘Bull Moose’ Party, splitting the conservative vote and handing the White House to Woodrow Wilson. Like Roosevelt, Musk now seems set on blitzing the political centre from both flanks.


But unlike Roosevelt or Perot, Musk commands a cult-like following online and sits atop a vast corporate empire spanning electric vehicles, spaceflight, and artificial intelligence. Where past third-party efforts faltered for want of media oxygen and money, Musk suffers no such disadvantage. He is the message, the megaphone and the moneybag all in one.


Musk’s critique echoes those of disillusioned centrists and radical populists alike that the Democrats and Republicans, despite their trench warfare over cultural issues, often collude in matters of spending, war and lobbying. The uniparty, in Musk’s telling, is as entrenched as the Spartan phalanx - invincible until Epaminondas of Thebes shattered it at Leuctra in 371 BC by deploying an unorthodox wedge formation. Musk promises to do the same with a concentrated assault on America’s political duopoly.


His analogy may flatter his ambitions. Yet the underlying strategy of targeting key Senate and House races with high-tech campaigns and precision funding is not without precedent. The Tea Party movement and Bernie Sanders’ insurgency both showed how disciplined, donor-powered swarms could unsettle incumbents. Musk, with his blend of fiscal conservatism, techno-optimism and libertarian instinct, hopes to do both parties equal harm. He has already outlined a centrist plank of reducing national debt, modernising the military and investing in artificial intelligence.


Still, voters may wonder whether the America Party is more flash than foundation. A party born from a Twitter poll risks resembling a vanity project more than a serious vehicle for reform. American history is rife with such shooting stars. Andrew Yang’s Forward Party promised to transcend tribalism but failed to attract meaningful traction. Kanye West’s brief presidential flirtation in 2020 was even less substantive. If Musk wants to be more than a billionaire gadfly, he will need institutional muscle and ballot access in 50 states.


The electoral college and single-member districts are designed to favour two parties. Even if Musk's party gains traction, it may end up kingmaking rather than governing, as Perot and Roosevelt once did. Or worse, it could splinter the vote enough to hand power to whichever side Musk disdains more.


For now, the America Party remains a concept more than a coalition. But its emergence underscores the volatility of the current moment. In an age where institutions are mistrusted and platforms are digital, a wealthy and wired man like Elon Musk can redraw the map faster than the old gatekeepers can respond.

Comments

bottom of page