All of a sudden, last week, the regional media in Maharashtra, especially the news television channels, started flashing videos one after the other of some leaders of the Shiv Sena in which they were seen doing controversial things, to say the least. The leaders were targeted even by the national news media, which questioned how these leaders, belonging to the ruling coalition, could be allowed to do such blatant things as were seen in the videos. To add to this, some Shiv Sena leaders also received notices from agencies of the central government over disproportionate income or growth in assets in the same time frame. All this has given rise to speculation in Maharashtra's political sphere about whether Eknath Shinde's Shiv Sena has now only limited utility in the BJP's view and whether the BJP thinks that Shinde is slowly becoming a burden for them in the Mahayuti alliance.
There has been some talk among the observers in Maharashtra about how the dynamics are shaping between various partners in the ruling Mahayuti alliance. It is obvious that the BJP has now accepted Ajit Pawar's existence in the government as a valuable alliance partner because he could win 41 seats in the last assembly polls and proved that his group is far superior compared to his uncle and NCP founder Sharad Pawar's group, which could get only 10 seats in the assembly polls. The BJP now feels that a partner from the "left of centre side" will perhaps be more valuable to them than a partner from the "Hindutva space". The BJP clearly wants to occupy the Hindutva space alone and does not want a partner to take away a large chunk of Hindutva votes and compete with it in the bargain. This is the reason the party has now begun to cut down Eknath Shinde's Shiv Sena, and we see his deputies being cornered or trapped in various controversial issues.
Maharashtra's minister of social justice department, Sanjay Shirsat, who is very close to the top leadership of the Shiv Sena, was heard saying under the current regime, his department is not being given funds properly. Some weeks ago, in full view of the media, he had said that his department should simply be shut down if the funds were not coming. Last week, Shirsat's hidden camera video was shared on social media by opposition leader and MP Sanjay Raut, in which Shirsat was allegedly seen sitting in his bedroom smoking, with bags full of currency notes lying around him. This created a storm in the state assembly as well as the media. Questions were asked about who shot the videos and provided them to the opposition. Many insiders pointed fingers at some source in the ruling party, who might have done that!
While these videos were out, news came about the income tax department issuing notices to Sanjay Shirsat regarding disproportionate growth in his assets and property in the last few years. While this was happening, another leader of the Shiv Sena, MLA Sanjay Gaikwad, faced media criticism nationally over a video showing him assaulting a food caterer at the MLA hostel in south Mumbai. The national media launched a verbal attack on Gaikwad for his behaviour and targeted the Shiv Sena over it. This gave rise to speculation about whether the BJP leadership now wants to cut down the importance and influence of leaders of the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena, as they feel that Shinde is too demanding and has become a liability for the Mahayuti.
Just a couple of days ago, as the assembly session was on in Mumbai, Eknath Shinde made an overnight trip to New Delhi and met union home minister Amit Shah. This again raised many questions about what Shinde was up to. Some observers claimed that Shinde expressed his discomfort and complained about several things. Insiders say Eknath Shinde and his leaders are facing many problems related to the allocation of funds and clearances of their projects because CM Fadnavis and Dy CM Ajit Pawar are ensuring that Shinde's MLAs have to repeatedly put in requests for every clearance.
Shiv Sena (UBT) MP and spokesperson Sanjay Raut claimed in Mumbai that during his meeting with union home minister Amit Shah, Dy CM Shinde actually offered to merge with the BJP and demanded that he should be made the Chief Minister ahead of the civic elections of Mumbai, Thane and other municipalities in Maharashtra. This could not be confirmed by any of the sources inside Shinde's Shiv Sena, but it was clear that Shinde's repeated visits to Delhi and meetings with union minister Amit Shah stemmed from severe discomfort between him and CM Fadnavis.
It is obvious that the BJP, ahead of the big civic polls in Maharashtra, feels that it has to cut down the influence of Eknath Shinde. The BJP may even look at pacifying one of the Thackeray cousins to some extent and empower him in certain pockets in Mumbai and Thane to ensure that Shinde's political influence gets restricted. It is clear that Shinde is very restless and has realised that the BJP is politically cornering him in every way possible. The overall strategy of the BJP is to not share the Hindutva vote with any partner and instead depend more on a partner who will bring votes from the left side of the political divide. How Shinde and his 57 MLAs, as well as the party cadre, react to all this is to be seen in the coming weeks and months.
Rohit Chandavarkar is a senior journalist who has worked for 31 years with various leading newspaper brands and television channels in Mumbai and Pune.
