On the eve of the Maharashtra polls, the big fish in the fray — the BJP-Sena and Cong-NCP combine — face an indifferent voter and the ignominy of a possible onslaught by rebels and Mayawati's BSP.
While the secular front is upbeat, the saffron alliance is struggling to come to terms with the immobility of its ageing patriarchs and the memories of their Lok Sabha defeat.
The missing punch in the BJP-Sena campaign with ailing Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray only managing a last-minute appearance, has given the rival combine a reason to smile.
If attendance is the barometer, the joint rally addressed by former PM A.B. Vajpayee and Thackeray was a success. But though the emaciated Thackeray lost no time in striking a rapport with the gathering, the fervour and excitement usually attached to his shows was missing.
The BJP is banking heavily on the possibility of the BSP factor scuttling the Congress-NCP chances. BJP leaders have maintained a studied silence on the rebel candidate syndrome, which the Sena has caught for the first time.