FILE photo: Prime Minister Narendra Modi
In a veiled attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi after the BJP's rout in the Delhi Assembly polls, ally Shiv Sena today said a "hero of politics" should not be under the misconception of having the unstinted support of the people.
"It is impossible to say whose wave will sweep away whom in the future... Every hero of politics should tread with caution... The people of this country are supreme. One should not think that one has an unstinted support of people," an editorial in Sena mouthpiece 'Saamana' said.
This is the third critique offered by the Sena is as many days over the performance of the BJP in the Delhi elections which saw it being run over by a party just two years old. Arvind Kejriwal's Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) won 67 seats; the BJP, runner up, won just three.
But the Sena also had a word of caution for Mr Kejriwal.
"Having an excessive pride of simplicity and honesty is also not right. (Arvind) Kejriwal's brand is his muffler. But he should not have any problem in keeping the muffler away when it has no use," the Sena said in its newspaper.
"According to reports, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had worn a branded Rs 30-35 lakh suit when (US President Barack) Obama had come to India. Kejriwal should make sure his muffler too does not become branded like the suit," the editorial said, warning against complacence following the AAP's euphoric win.
The Sena had, a day after the BJP's decimation in the Delhi elections, tore into its ally saying the "broom-wielding" Aam Aadmi Party had reduced the BJP to "dirt" and virtually demanded that the Prime Minister accept the blame for the debacle.
"The entire election campaign was run in the name of Modi. Anna Hazare said this is Modi's defeat. We too feel the same. The way the party attributed its success in other states to Modi, they should do the same for Delhi," it had said.
The Shiv Sena partners with the BJP to govern Maharashtra; it is also a member of the PM's coalition government. Ahead of the Maharashtra election last year, the Sena and the BJP went through a nasty break-up. The BJP won first place in the election but not a majority. The Sena, which was runner-up, was made to sweat by BJP leaders before they allowed an alliance, which brought Mr Thackeray's party back to power after nearly 15 years spent in the opposition.