Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray at a press conference in Mumbai
Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray today said he hopes his party's 25-year partnership with the BJP will survive their latest tussle over seat sharing, but rejected his ally's suggestion that they contest 135 seats apiece in next month's assembly elections in Maharashtra, leaving 18 seat for their smaller allies.
The Sena wants to contest nothing less than 155 of the state's 288 seats. "135 seats each is not feasible. The BJP had mission 272 for the Lok Sabha elections. What's wrong if Sena has Mission 150 for state elections?" Mr Thackeray said today, adding, "I am trying my best for an alliance. We don't want to take any steps to break the alliance as it is for Hindutva."
Talks between the partners have halted ever since the Shiv Sena chief made several scathing comments, among them the sarcastic observation that "there is a Modi wave and there was nothing wrong in saying that... there are other waves, like in the sea there are many waves."
An incensed BJP credits the alliance's spectacular performance in national elections this year to a "
Narendra Modi wave" and argues that it is no more the junior partner in Maharashtra after winning more Lok Sabha seats than the Sena. The Sena chief's counter: "Did the Modi wave show in Tamil Nadu, Punjab, Odisha and West Bengal? It depends on alliance partners as well."
The BJP's Rajiv Pratap Rudy said, "We are awaiting feedback so that we can strategize how to go about it. The talks are on a right footing," indicating that much will hinge on a likely meeting between Mr Thackeray and BJP chief Amit Shah in Mumbai on Thursday.
In 2009, the Sena had contested 169 seats and won 44, the BJP contested 119 and won 46. The stakes are high as the party with the most legislators will have the bigger claim to the Chief Minister's post.
(Read)Sources in both parties say that while all efforts shall be made to arrive at a consensus, each is preparing to contest all 288 seats in Maharashtra.
This is not the first time that the two partners have brought to the table brinksmanship and pressure tactics as they attempt to hammer out a seat-sharing pact. They will draw some relief from the fact that the rival coalition of the Congress and Sharad Pawar's Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) are also yet to agree on a seat-sharing arrangement.
There has been some tussle there too, but it is expected to end once Congress President Sonia Gandhi is back in India.