Amit Shah calls up Shiv Sena chief, ready to accept 130
As the Shiv Sena remained firm on donning the role of big brother in Maharashtra politics and refused to give more Assembly seats to its ally of 25 years, the BJP, the latter made a “very liberal offer” of scaling down from its earlier demand of 135 seats, saying it is prepared for five less and even accept “the worst possible seats” that the Sena has not won in the last 25 years. BJP chief Amit Shah on Monday spoke to Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray in a bid to salvage the alliance and told him that his party was ready to scale down its demand to 130. After the conversation between the two leaders, speculation was rife that the Sena could agree to give three or four more seats to the BJP.
“Shah has spoken to Sena chief and that itself indicates that we are very very eager to have the alliance... We are very keen that the alliance exists,” BJP general secretary in charge of Maharashtra Rajiv Pratap Rudy said. He, however, added: “In a contingent situation that the BJP is compelled not to contest with the Shiv Sena, we would go it alone on all 288 seats, but we will prefer that the Shiv Sena comes along.”
The Sena had earlier offered 119 seats to the BJP while it wants to contest on 151, leaving 18 for the smaller allies. The BJP has rejected the proposal.
The Shiv Sena, sources said, apprehends that contesting more seats could improve the BJP’s prospects, which in turn will dent the Sena’s claim for the chief minister’s post.
The BJP top brass has asked its Maharashtra unit that they should try to resolve the seat-sharing formula with the ally till the last minute, but should also start preparing to go alone in case the alliance breaks. Meanwhile, other constituents of the Shiv Sena-BJP-led grand alliance are putting pressure on the two major partners that they should sort out their differences at the earliest, as it was not just affecting their individual campaigns but also the Mahayuti’s campaign, which has projected itself as the answer to the “15-year misrule of the Congress-NCP” in the state.
Sources disclosed that both the Shiv Sena and the BJP have also started deliberations with their leaders on contesting on all 288 seats and are readying lists. The parties claimed that no discussions were held between them on Monday, a day after the BJP asked its ally to discuss the seat-sharing formula directly with it and not through the media. Mr Thackeray had on Sunday proposed that the BJP contest on 119 seats. He had said this during the Sena’s national executive meeting held in Mumbai. Meanwhile, the Shiv Sena held a meeting of its MPs, chaired by Mr Thackeray, on Monday. At the meeting, he discussed the changing political scenario and told Sena leaders to be ready for whatever comes.
“No discussions were held today and we are not going to talk with the Shiv Sena as of now. Let’s see what the Sena has to say about seat-sharing. One should talk across the table and not through the media,” senior BJP leader and Leader of the Opposition in the state Assembly Eknath Khadse said.
The BJP, meanwhile, has convened a meeting on Tuesday of its senior leaders in Mumbai and is expected to take some decision. Speculation is rife that the BJP could announce the names of some of its candidates on seats which the party had been contesting.
Maintaining that the Shiv Sena was still ready to deliberate with its ally, its leader Sanjay Raut said: “We want to continue the alliance and are ready to talk.” The Sena has already projected Mr Thackeray as the CM candidate, who recently said that he was ready for the post.
However, the BJP, which won 23 parliamentary seats in the general elections compared to the Sena’s 18, is insisting that it should be given more seats this time and whichever of the two parties gets more seats should claim the CM’s post. The Shiv Sena, however, insists that they should go by the traditional seat-sharing formula for the Assembly elections, wherein the Sena contests more seats.