Fighting against ally Shiv Sena will only add stress to strained ties, while BJP’s loss to Cong-NCP in Bhandara-Gondiya again shows might of a combined opposition.
Mumbai: The BJP may have retained the Palghar Lok Sabha constituency in Maharashtra, a prestige issue amid a fiercely-contested battle with warring ally Shiv Sena, but the party is likely to have more reasons to worry than rejoice.
In the Palghar bypoll, BJP’s Rajendra Gavit secured 2,72,782 votes defeating Sena’s Shrinivas Wanga, who got 2,43,210 votes, according to data received from counting centres.
The Shiv Sena’s loss is likely to further strain the already choppy relations between the warring allies. Besides, the BJP’s defeat at the hands of the NCP in the Bhandara-Gondia Lok Sabha bypoll also shows that Sharad Pawar’s party along with the Congress can challenge the ruling party. It might be imperative for the BJP to ally with the Shiv Sena to stay afloat.
But post-Palghar, the Sena — which has been bitterly critical of its ally since 2014 — became even more aggressive in its criticism, accusing the BJP of misusing government machinery for political gains. The party approached the Election Commission, complaining of irregularities in the bypoll and asking for a recount of votes.
“We have highlighted a problem in the counting of votes. In certain rounds, instead of the Shiv Sena’s votes cumulatively increasing, the numbers showed a successive drop,” said Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray at a press conference Thursday.
“The Election Commission should not declare the results. All officials responsible for the various glitches in the bypoll should be immediately suspended,” he demanded.
Thackeray also said he did not accept the result and that the Palghar bypoll raised doubts about whether it was a democratic process as voting machines malfunctioned and voter turnout figures surged overnight.
“There is corruption in the Election Commission. The democratic process should start by allowing the election commissioner to be democratically chosen,” he alleged. “Otherwise only one party will appoint people in the institution and then we will have what happened in Palghar.”
But despite the barbs, the Shiv Sena chief evaded questions on whether his party will continue to be a part of the BJP-led Maharashtra government. He simply reiterated the Sena’s resolution of fighting all elections henceforth independently, despite recent overtures by senior BJP leaders.
The Palghar contest
The bypoll was necessitated after the death of sitting BJP MP Chintaman Wanga. The election was important for both the parties.
It provided an opportunity to the Sena to emphasise its ability to fight independently and send the BJP a message not to take it for granted.
For the BJP, it was not merely a question of fighting to retain its seat, but also a matter of pride and the need to showcase its electoral strength over the Sena.
The Palghar bypoll was characterised by a shrill, acrimonious campaign, as the Shiv Sena pitched deceased BJP MP Wanga’s son, Shrinivas, against Gavit, who the BJP poached from the Congress.
Thackeray, in his several rallies across the constituency, warned the BJP of a repeat of the Uttar Pradesh bypolls in March where it lost, and the BJP slammed its junior ally as dishonest and a “back-stabbing” friend for fielding Shrinivas.
“Now, if the Shiv Sena wants a political future, it should definitely not ally with the BJP because the party will be relegated to the second place,” said political analyst Prakash Bal.
“Outwardly, the alliance is at a breaking point, though we do not know what the equation is internally. What happens to the alliance will be clearer in the next two or three months,” he added.
According to Bal, the Congress should have ideally supported the local Bahujan Vikas Aghadi and the CPI(M) instead of contesting and dividing votes.
“The Congress needs to be clear about whether its primary aim is to grow as a party or to defeat the Narendra Modi-regime. Both objectives will not work,” he said.
The BJP’s loss
The Bhandara-Gondia bypoll was held after sitting BJP MP Nana Patole resigned and later joined the Congress. The Congress and NCP contested jointly, with Patole agreeing to step aside for an NCP candidate, considering it is the home turf of senior party leader Praful Patel.
And the two handed a drubbing to the BJP. The joint candidate, Madhukar Kukde, defeated the BJP’s Hemant Patle by more than 20,000 votes.
“This shows that people are dissatisfied with the BJP governments at the Centre and in the state and if like-minded parties come together, it is possible to defeat the BJP,” Patel said.
The loss at Bhandara-Gondia was also a blow to the BJP as the constituency falls in Maharashtra’s Vidarbha region, which has traditionally been a party stronghold.
Political observer Surendra Jondhale said, “The result has shown that the combined ground network of the Congress and NCP is strong and it is a political compulsion for both the parties to come together.”
“The main takeaway from the bypoll is that though all parties would like to contest the 2019 elections independently for their own political gain, it has become a must for these parties to contest in alliances,” he added.