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Shiv Sena fears BJP may ditch again before Maharashtra Assembly polls

A BJP leader admitted that the results had led to Sena's bargaining power declining for the state Assembly polls with the resurgent BJP seeking to assert itself

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CM Devendra Fadnavis and Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray exchange bouquets as they celebrate NDA’s victory in LS elections, in Mumbai, on Thursday
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Despite the party repeating its best-ever tally of 18 seats, there is trepidation within the Shiv Sena over the BJP asserting itself after securing a stronger mandate in the Lok Sabha elections. Sena leaders fear a repeat of 2014 when the BJP ditched it just before the Maharashtra Assembly elections to emerge as the single-largest party.

“There are chances that the BJP may try to corner us before the state Assembly polls after its runaway success in the Lok Sabha elections,” admitted a senior Shiv Sena leader.

A BJP leader admitted that the results had led to Sena's bargaining power declining for the state Assembly polls with the resurgent BJP seeking to assert itself. 

“The Shiv Sena was pegging its hopes on the BJP's seats declining beyond its 2014 tally of 282. This would give them a greater voice in Delhi and also in Maharashtra,” he admitted.In 2014, buoyed by its success in the Lok Sabha polls, the BJP snapped its alliance with the Shiv Sena for the state assembly after a tug-of-war over seat-sharing terms. The party overcame its status as a winnow in Maharashtra to carry the day on the Narendra Modi wave and emerge as the single-largest with 122 seats, followed by the Sena, its erstwhile senior partner, at a distant 63.

Though the Sena joined the Devendra Fadnavis government, it played out the role of the opposition by criticising the Modi and Fadnavis regimes of which it was part. In January 2018, the Sena announced it would contest all future polls sans an alliance with the BJP.

However, after months of stinging criticism against the BJP, the Shiv Sena finally announced its alliance pact. The Sena managed to get an extra Lok Sabha seat to contest, taking its tally of seats contested to 23 of 48. 

For the state assembly, the Sena has managed to strike a deal to contest half of the 288 seats. Though Sena leaders claim that the party will get the chief minister's post after the polls, this has been vehemently denied by senior BJP ministers who state they are unwilling to part with this.A senior Shiv Sena leader admitted that the renewed, stronger mandate may lead to the BJP trying to rework these terms to corner the Sena or snap the alliance altogether. “This may sound unpalatable today, but we have to be prepared for the situation,” he claimed.

PARTY AT STAKE

  • Sena leaders fear a repeat of 2014 when BJP ditched it before Maha Assembly elections to emerge as the single-largest party
     
  • A BJP leader said results had led to Sena’s bargaining power declining for the state Assembly polls
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