Maharashtra BJP caught between two warring leaders

The Bharatiya Janata Party finds itself caught between two commanders pulling the cadre in different directions in the budget session. The leader of the opposition Eknath Khadse who should be taking the final decision finds individuals pushing their agenda without adequate discussions. The tussle within the BJP was evident when state BJP chief Sudhir Mungantiwar, by raking the non-inclusion of opposition members in Sanjay Gandhi Niradhar Yogna, created a situation where the party was forced to disrupt the budget speech.

A senior BJP leader said, “We are not questioning the right of any senior leader to raise the issue. To his credit Mungantiwar brought the entire opposition on a common platform to protest against the Congress-NCP government. But had there been a proper planning, the party wouldn’t have been seen struggling to find rationale for its boycott.”

But nobody can explain why the BJP, whose focus was to target prime minister Manmohan Singh and chief minister Prithviraj Chavan on Central Vigilance Commission, did not protest after CM’s statement. Or why attack against deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar was not planned in consultation with leader in state council, Pandurang Phundkar and others.

A senior Congress minister said, “This week when Khadse initiated the debate on budget sizeable members and senior leaders from the opposition went missing. What does this reflect?”

However, what has worked to the BJP’s advantage is that Sena and MNS are cooperating with their strategy.