Mumbai: BJP’s tetchy ally in Maharashtra, Shiv Sena met on Monday to decide their strategy for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. “We are the big brother in Maharashtra, we were the big brother and will stay the big brother,” was first thing Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut had to say to reporters after the meeting was over.
Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut after party meeting in Mumbai: We are the big brother in Maharashtra, we were the big brother and will stay the big brother. pic.twitter.com/xnjddcv3rz
— ANI (@ANI) January 28, 2019
This goes in stark contradiction to the fact that back in 2014 Lok Sabha elections, out of the 48 seats from the state of Maharashtra, the Shiv Sena-BJP alliance had won 41 seats, 23 of which were won by BJP and the remaining 18 by Shiv Sena.
And when it comes to the state legislative assembly, the BJP is ahead with 121 members in the 289-member legislative assembly against the Shiv Sena’s 63.
But relations between the two parties have come under stress in the wake of Shiv Sena’s unrelenting and unsparing criticism of the BJP over a range of issues.
Nevertheless, wanting to keep the Shiv Sena on their side, the BJP has ignored its repeated criticism of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the governments at the centre and the state time and again.
“We discussed Rafale, issue of drought in Maharashtra. Udhav Thackrey Ji said on the 10% EWS quota to General Category that people with annual income of 8 lakh must be exempted from paying Income Tax. Since you have labelled them poor, they must be exempted,” Sanjay Raut said to reporters of ANI.
With agency inputs.
