Raosaheb Danve pushes for alliance with Shiv Sena

Mumbai: At a time many smaller parties have left the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led government at the centre, state BJP chief Raosaheb Danve has again pushed for a BJP-Shiv Sena alliance.

Mr Danve said that in Maharashtra, the BJP would like to go to polls in an alliance with the Sena. He also said that attempts to get the Sena onboard are being made.

Mr Danve’s statement makes it clear that even though the Sena plans to “go solo” in elections henceforth, the BJP hasn’t yet given up on the Sena.

Meanwhile, sources claimed that the BJP has assigned the task of convincing Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray for an alliance to state finance minister Sudhir Mungantiwar.

In Mumbai on Tuesday, Mr Danve met chief minister Devendra Fadnavis at Vidhan Bhavan. Asked about the BJP’s stance on the Sena’s decision to contest the coming elections on its own, Mr Danve said, “We are in government with the Sena. We are sure that this alliance will continue in the elections as well. We will talk to them.”

The Sena chief annou-nced the party’s decision to go it alone in subsequent elections on

January 23 this year. Ever since, the Sena has maintained its stance. According to sources however, the BJP has asked Mr Mungantiwar to convince the Sena leadership for an alliance.

A senior leader of the party on condition of anonymity said, “There are talks underway between the senior leaders of both parties. There will be negotiations. BJP is in no mood to go to general elections without the Sena in 2019.”

The Telugu Desam Party (TDP) recently left the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) after which other alliance partners such as Ramvilas Paswan’s Lok Janshakti Party, too, are reportedly disturbed. Given this backdrop, the Sena contesting on its own in the coming elections would cost BJP a lot in Mahar-ashtra. That is why despite constant attacks by the Sena leadership, the BJP is still pursuing it for an alliance.

Stating that the government does not worry about Saamana’s (the Sena’s mouthpiece) stinging editorials,  Mr Danve said, “Electoral pacts are not decided by what gets printed in papers.  Saamana used to attack Manohar Joshi’s (1995-99) Maharashtra government openly. So, we are not worried out Saamanaeditorials.”