Big brother trouble in both the coalitions
In Maharashtra, post-election tussle begins over 'big brother' status in coalitions for seat sharing talks ahead of assembly elections.
After the Lok Sabha election results, tussle has begun in both the rival coalitions in Maharashtra over who is the ‘big brother’. The argument is being made with an eye on seat sharing talks for the assembly elections, slated for later this year. The party that has done better than its allies will claim more seats and by virtue of that, would also stake claim to the chief minister’s chair if they win.
The debate began with state Congress president Nana Patole announcing that Congress will be playing the role of big brother in the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA). The Congress won 13 seats, highest in the coalition. In no time, Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut reacted, saying that there is no big brother in the coalition.
In the ruling coalition, which could win only 17 seats in the state, CM Shinde-led Shiv Sena is insisting that it has a better strike rate than its allies (by which it means the BJP) and hence it is the big brother. BJP contested 28 seats but could win only nine while Shiv Sena contested 15 and won 7 seats. This was clearly stated by Shiv Sena leaders Sanjay Shirsat and Shambhuraj Desai.
BJP largely ignored their remarks though its leaders are not happy with Sena leaders over these claims.
In their meeting on Saturday, MVA leaders decided to avoid the showdown over the whole issue and announced that there was no big or small brother in their coalition. They also said seat sharing would be decided on the basis of winnability in each constituency. However, that is unlikely to stop Patole and Co from making a noise. As far as the ruling alliance is concerned, Shiv Sena and Ajit Pawar’s NCP have already decided not to let BJP rein them in. We can expect to see a lot of muscle flexing between the allies over the next few weeks.
*Family first? Not for Shinde
Though it was said that the decision to nominate Sunetra Pawar to the Rajya Sabha was taken by party leaders unanimously, it has not gone down well with Ajit’s colleagues in the party. Bhujbal has publicly said that he was also interested in the berth. There were several others including former Congress leader Baba Siddiqui who were among the hopefuls.
Some are even wondering why Ajit chose to give it to a family member especially when chief minister Eknath Shinde made it a point not to give the lone ministerial berth his party got in the union government to his MP son Shrikant. Instead, he picked senior MP Prataprao Jadhav for the berth. Shinde’s supporters even kept pointing out how the CM’s decision is in line with PM Modi’s stand against dynastic rule.
Interestingly, after she filed her nomination, when asked if she would like to be a minister, Sunetra Pawar agreed. “I would love to take the responsibility if I get the chance,” she said.
*Bhujbal’s lament
There is no doubt that Chhagan Bhujbal is the most popular orator in the NCP. Apart from Ajit Pawar, Bhujbal is the only leader in the party whose speeches draw a crowd. Normally during election time, Bhujbal is in great demand in his party as well as among allies for campaign rallies. However, the recent Lok Sabha election was an exception. Most party candidates avoided inviting him for fear of Maratha outfits. At the height of the agitation by Manoj Jarange-Patil, Bhujbal had opposed the activist’s demand to give reservation to Marathas from the OBC quota. Maratha outfits had appealed the community to boycott the firebrand NCP leader.
Addressing functionaries on NCP foundation day in Mumbai, Bhujbal did not forget to mention the same. He pointed out that he was not invited for several election rallies. “Some candidates even avoided putting my pictures on their posters,” he lamented and then added, “Still the seats were lost. It was not only because of Marathas. The effect of Maratha agitation was limited to 2-3 districts. There were other reasons.”
*In the line of fire
An additional municipal commissioner in the BMC is on the radar of BJP leaders as they feel the officer is doing the bidding of chief minister Shinde. According to party insiders, deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis too is irked with the officer over certain things that have happened recently.
Earlier, the BJP was up in arms against then civic chief I S Chahal who was also accused of taking orders only from the chief minister. The latest episode is also indicative of the cold war between Shinde and his powerful deputy.