In a Maharashtra local election, a BJP-Congress tie-up, then a break-up, and now a situationship

In 60-member Ambernath municipal council, Shiv Sena won 27 seats, followed by BJP with 14 & Congress 12—none reaching majority mark of 31, opening door to post-poll tie-ups.

Representational images of BJP and Congress workers waving their respective party flags | ANI

Mumbai: After springing a shocker by allying with the Congress to grab power in a Maharashtra municipal council and then calling off the partnership, the BJP Thursday rekindled ties with its arch rival, albeit in a different way.

The BJP brought the Congress’ all 12 councilors in its fold and staked claim to Ambernath municipal council.

The defections of the Congress councillors to the BJP came after their state leadership suspended the party’s Ambernath unit chief, the 12 elected councillors, and dissolved the entire local party unit for joining hands with the BJP.

After the municipal council polls last month, the BJP cobbled together an alliance in the Ambernath municipal council in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region to keep its Mahayuti ally, the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena, out of power. 

In the 60-member council, the Shiv Sena had won 27 seats, the BJP 14, and the Congress 12. 

The BJP tied up with 12 councillors of the Congress, 4 of the Ajit Pawar-led NCP, and one independent to form an ‘Ambernath Vikas Aghadi’ of 31 councillors. After news of the alliance spread, both the BJP and Congress came under a lot of flak, while the state leaderships of both the BJP as well as the Congress leaderships fumed at their local units.

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said the alliance cannot be “tolerated” and that there would be action against the local leaders, while the Congress went a step ahead and suspended the local leadership and the councillors.

The 12 Ambernath councillors joined the BJP in the presence of Maharashtra BJP President Ravindra Chavan.

BJP’s commitment to development’

Before formally inducting the 12 councillors, Chavan said the move was due to the BJP’s commitment to development, and not for power.

“Under the leadership of PM Narendra Modi and CM Devendra Fadnavis, the BJP strives to ensure that all development works are implemented and completed, and from the same point of view, today, I am happy to announce that all Congress councillors at Ambernath have decided to join the BJP,” Chavan said.

Maharashtra Congress President Harshwardhan Sapkal slammed the BJP’s move, saying it exposes their “two-faced behaviour”.

“We told our councillors that there is no reason to go with either BJP or Shiv Sena. We suspended them, and BJP inducted them. This is an example of how the BJP does things,” Sapkal said. 

Sapkal said that the BJP wants a “Congress-mukt Bharat” (Congress-free India), but it is ending up with a “Congress-niyukt BJP (A BJP full of Congress).”

“All of this shows the party’s ideological bankruptcy.” 

Show cause over tie-up with AIMIM 

The BJP’s local unit in the Akola district had formed a similar alliance for the Akot municipal council, including councillors of the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen, along with both factions of the Shiv Sena and the NCP and Bacchu Kadu’s Prahar Janshakti Party. 

The party registered this front as the Akot Vikas Manch. The alliance, however, drew severe criticism after which the state BJP leadership called it off. 

Maharashtra BJP President Chavan also sent a show cause notice to its Akot MLA Prakash Bharsakhle for initiating the alliance with the AIMIM and hurting the party’s image. 

“We have given the MLA eight days to respond to the notice, after which we will decide what action to take,” a BJP leader told ThePrint.

(Edited by Ajeet Tiwari)