Mumbai: Union minister Nitin Gadkari’s name has emerged as a possible dark horse for chief minister of Maharashtra.
The trigger for the latest possibility in the government formation jigsaw is the late Tuesday night meeting between outgoing Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat in Nagpur. Sources said Bhagwat favours a government headed by Gadkari.
The Shiv Sena, the BJP’s warring ally, is not averse to Gadkari. The party will in fact see it as a victory.
A close friend of the late Shiv Sena chief Balasaheb Thackeray, Gadkari was a regular visitor to Matoshree, the Bandra residence of the Thackerays in Mumbai. He has been the BJP’s emissary to fire-fight the turf war between the party and the Shiv Sena whenever it has risen.
As the public works minister in the Shiv Sena-BJP government between 1995 and 1999, Gadkari implemented the Mumbai-Pune Expressway project that has been showcased as one of the first such projects in the country. It was also a project very close to the late Shiv Sena chief.
Caught in traffic jams for hours on the old Mumbai-Pune highway, Thackeray had vowed to build a superfast expressway, if voted to power.
Gadkari has continued to nurture his friendship with the Thackerays spanning nearly two decades. Incumbent Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray is also understood to be not against Gadkari heading a government in Maharashtra.
Also read: Shiv Sena could ‘split and 24 MLAs join BJP’ if Uddhav Thackeray decides not to join govt
Congress, NCP still in the game
The other possibility is that Maharashtra is likely to see a new combination in power with a Shiv Sena–NCP government, supported by the Congress. In such a scenario, the chief minister is likely to be from the Shiv Sena and deputy CM from the NCP, while the Speaker’s post will be with the Congress.
With the BJP making it clear that the CM’s chair is non-negotiable, the three parties appear to be engaging far more with each other than they normally would.
The new-found bonhomie has been aided by the fact that the sparring between the Shiv Sena and the BJP has intensified, leaving the likelihood of the warring partners reaching an amicable solution seemingly bleak.
BJP in a bind
Elected as the single largest party with 105 seats, the BJP is still holding onto the fading hope that the Shiv Sena will fall in line. At a press conference Tuesday, senior BJP leader and outgoing minister Sudhir Mungantiwar said, “Badal chhutenge, suraj nikalega aur sarkar banegi. (The clouds will clear, sun will rise and the government will be formed).”
He added that the BJP has sent a proposal to the Shiv Sena.
“We are ready for any discussion,” said Mungantiwar, who is considered close to Gadkari. “They (Shiv Sena) should start the discussion. You may get the good news any minute.”
Given his proximity to Gadkari, this has only strengthened the belief that the Union minister may take over in the state. The catch in the situation is Gadkari’s reluctance to return to Maharashtra.
“When a power tussle arose in Goa, Manohar Parrikar who was a Union minister was sent back to head the state government. So why not Gadkari?” said a source.
The BJP, however, will still have to contend with the Shiv Sena, which is adamant on the CM’s chair. Shiv Sena leader and editor of the party mouthpiece Saamana, Sanjay Raut said there will be no further discussions with the BJP as Thackeray’s stand is clear on the top job in the state.
The BJP too is not ceding an inch. Maharashtra BJP president Chandrakant Patil, considered to be close to party president Amit Shah, has categorically stated that there will be no compromise for the CM’s post. “For all other discussions, our doors are open to the Shiv Sena,” Patil said.
For all its bravado, the BJP is rattled, admitted a senior leader.
Also read: Sonia Gandhi ‘not keen’ to ally with Sena, wants Congress & NCP to work out a formula
The CM under pressure
The stalemate has only increased scrutiny on Fadnavis.
The CM had stifled all opposition to him, from within the BJP, by denying tickets to those who were seen as rivals to his chair. When Gadkari, once seen as a contender to the PM’s chair, was sidelined at the Centre, all those who belonged to his camp were denied tickets in the Assembly polls in Maharashtra.
Now, there is little sympathy in the BJP for Fadnavis.
A sizeable section of the party’s state unit had in 2014 felt that Chandrakant Patil would be given the top job in Maharashtra. But when Fadnavis was elected as the Legislature Party leader, it seemed to have ruffled many feathers.
Fadnavis has never minced words in his dealings with the Shiv Sena, a fact that is also going against him.
But time is running out for the parties. The term of the outgoing BJP-Shiv Sena government ends on 9 November, and if a new government is not in place by then, Maharashtra will head for President’s rule.
Also read: Shiv Sena fumes after BJP ‘threatens’ President’s rule in Maharashtra
Haima Deshpande is a freelance journalist.