Friends again due to ‘public sentiment’

Mumbai: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Shiv Sena have defended their decision to forge an alliance for the Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha polls calling it ‘honouring of public sentiment.’

Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis said, “People wanted both the parties to come together. We have been in alliance for last 25 years. In last five years, there were some differences, but ideologically both the parties are pro-hindutva. We will keep working in the interest of common people, farmers and poor.”

However, in the seat-sharing formula between the two parties, the BJP has clearly emerged as the winner. Despite the Sena’s constant pressure tactics, the BJP has managed to maintain its role of ‘big brother’ in the alliance.

While the BJP (25) will contest two seats more than the Sena (23) in LS polls, it has also managed to convince its estranged ally to settle for the seat-sharing formula on its own term in the Vidhan Sabha polls. Both the parties have agreed to fight equal number of seats, which are left behind after allotting seats to smaller allies.

The formula is more and less similar to the one offered by the BJP in the last Vidhan Sabha polls, which was rejected by the Sena. However, this time despite initial objections the Sena has finally toed the BJP’s line.

The only satisfaction the Sena could draw from the seat-sharing talks is that it has managed to force the BJP to accept its stand on the Nanar refinery project and a complete property tax waiver to people living in houses up to 500 square feet in Mumbai.

State-run oil majors have tied up with Saudi Aramco and Abu Dhabi National Oil Company for the refinery project in Ratnagiri district, which entails an investment of `3 lakh crore. The 60-million tonne per annum refinery-cum- petrochemical complex has been conceived as the largest such facility in the world, to be set up on over 15,000 acres.

“As locals are denying to provide their land, the land acquisition process for the Nanar project has been stopped. All the proceedings initiated for the project will be nullified. The project would be implemented at a place acceptable to local people,” said Mr Fadnavis. We have also decided to waive off property tax for people living in houses up to 500 sq ft, he added.

Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray said, “While locals are opposed refinery project, it does not mean that the project should not be implemented elsewhere. It can be done by taking locals into confidence.”

In the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, the two parties along with their allies had won 42 out of the 48 seats. The BJP had bagged 23 seats, while the Shiv Sena had emerged victorious in 18 constituencies. The two parties had contested the October 2014 Maharashtra Assembly election separately and had come together to form government in a post-poll arrangement in December that year.

Referring the Sena chief as ‘margdarshak’ (mentor) of his government, Mr Fadnavis said, “I have always sought his advice on many important issues.”

Mr Thackeray also claimed that Mr Fadnavis met him several times in the last five years to discuss issues and added, “Now that we have officially announced our alliance, we don’t have to meet secretly.”

Referring to the terror attack at Pulwama in Kashmir, the Shiv Sena chief said there was anger and dissent among the people over the Pulwama attack. Mr Thackeray said he expected the government to show to Pakistan that India was not a weak nation.

Reacting to the announcement of the alliance, the Congress alleged the BJP might have forced the bickering ally Shiv Sena to agree for the poll tie-up by threatening it with “Enforcement Directorate (ED) investigation”. Leader of Opposition in the state Legislative Assembly Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil dared the Sena chief to reveal the reasons behind taking a “U-turn”.

“I have information that the BJP might have compelled Shiv Sena to form an alliance by showing it fear of the Enforcement Directorate,” Mr Vikhe Patil said.

Taking potshots, Maharashtra Congress unit president Ashok Chavan said the poll tie-up was an alliance of the “Rafale thief and the party which is desperate for power”. “Tiger abhi bhi lachar hai,” Mr Chavan said ridiculing the Sena. Tiger is the emblem of the Uddhav Thackerayled party.