Uddhav Thackeray's Shiv Sena has demanded the post of NDA convenor
The ruling BJP faced a litany of complaints from its oldest ally Shiv Sena at a coordination meeting of the National Democratic Alliance or NDA on Monday evening. Sources say Prime Minister Narendra Modi told a disenchanted Sena that the coalition must appear united in the monsoon session of Parliament, which begins today.
The Sena, accusing the BJP of neglecting its allies, demanded the post of NDA convenor, say sources.
Confronting sharp criticism from the Sena about "lack of coordination with allies," the Prime Minister reportedly said that allies should inform him if they had any issues. He has reportedly asked BJP president Amit Shah to look into the demands of allies like the Sena and Upendra Kushwaha from Bihar, who had also openly complained that NDA partners had been neglected.
"If the NDA is weakened then even the BJP suffers," warned Mr Kushwaha who heads the Rashtriya Lok Samata Party, a regional party that joined the NDA last year before the national elections. "There should have been regular meetings of the NDA... It would have meant that allies would not have spoken outside against government policies sending a poor message," Mr Kushwaha, who is a Union Minister, said.
Sena spokesperson Sanjay Raut was more scathing as he said on Monday, "The positive mood that was there for this government 14 months ago exists no more." He also commented acerbically, "We are happy that 14 months after government formation, the Prime Minister has called an NDA meet."
The Sena indicated that it is upset at not being consulted on strategy to tackle opposition protests against BJP leaders Sushma Swaraj, Shivraj Singh Chouhan and Vasundhara Raje. Mr Raut said while his party backed the leaders, "It would be better if allies were consulted."