Leaders of Maharashtra with PM Modi.
The BJP has suffered a major political setback in Maharashtra in the Lok Sabha elections, due to which the NDA group is now on the verge of disintegration. NCP chief Ajit Pawar is caught in a political crisis after the Lok Sabha elections. NCP did not get a cabinet post in the Modi cabinet, on the other hand, Ajit Pawar’s MLAs are planning to return home. In such a situation, Maharashtra BJP leaders have started raising their voice to break ties with Ajit Pawar, while NCP has also started giving signals of separation from NDA. In such a situation, will the BJP-led NDA disintegrate before the Maharashtra assembly elections?
In Maharashtra, 30 of the 48 Lok Sabha seats were won by the constituent parties of the Congress-led Bharat Alliance, while the BJP-led NDA had to settle for 17 seats. BJP has come down from 23 Lok Sabha seats to just 9 seats while NDA has lost 24 seats this time.
In the Lok Sabha elections, BJP got 26.18 percent votes this time compared to 27.8 percent in 2019 and NDA got 43.6 percent vote share. BJP’s ally Shiv Sena won 7 seats while NCP won one seat. At the same time, India Alliance ally Congress has won 13 seats, Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena 9 seats and Sharad Pawar’s NCP 8 seats.
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The BJP-led NDA is likely to face a stiff challenge in the assembly elections from the Indian alliance in Maharashtra. In such a situation, BJP’s allies NCP and Shiv Sena have also started demanding seats. Shinde’s Shiv Sena has sought to contest at least 100 of Maharashtra’s 288 assembly seats, while Ajit Pawar’s NCP is seeking 90 seats.
The BJP is the single largest party in the 288-member assembly with 105 MLAs in the state and even after the Chief Minister’s chair has been handed over to Eknath Shinde, the Lok Sabha election results have created unease in the NDA. If the BJP leaders do not consider Ajit Pawar politically correct, then the NCP leaders have also started finding their own political path.
Clash in NDA camp
The political chemistry between Congress, Uddhav Thackeray and Sharad Pawar is looking very good after the victory in the Lok Sabha elections, while in the NDA camp, there is a clash between the BJP, Shinde and Ajit Pawar camps. NCP MLC Amol Mitkari, who is close to Ajit Pawar, says the Mahayutti parties may contest the next state assembly elections separately. He has also hinted at an alliance with Prakash Ambedkar’s party Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi. A BJP worker in Shirur in Maharashtra’s Pune district has demanded the expulsion of Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and his NCP from the NDA ruling coalition.
BJP is saddened by the defeat in the Lok Sabha elections
The BJP is deeply hurt by the crushing defeat in the Lok Sabha polls and the demand for the ouster of NCP Ajit Pawar from the NDA ahead of the Assembly elections has intensified. BJP leaders believe that being with Ajit Pawar has not helped in the Lok Sabha elections. Now they have become a burden for NDA. They will add to the trouble by demanding more tickets in the assembly elections again. An article in the RSS mouthpiece Organizer and Panchjanya said that Ajit Pawar has now become a burden on the NDA. BJP should get rid of them.
Uproar over article published in RSS mouthpiece
The Ajit Pawar group strongly protested the article published in the RSS mouthpiece, but the BJP and Shinde are maintaining silence on it. Amidst these developments came a statement from NCP Ajit Pawar’s MLC and party spokesperson Amol Mitkari, indicating that Ajit Pawar is now looking for a new alliance. In such a situation, there are indications that NCP will not contest assembly elections by staying with NDA.
An attempted alliance between Pawar-Ambedkar
It is believed that Ajit Pawar is trying to form an alliance with Prakash Ambedkar of Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA), but Prakash Ambedkar is not ready to stay with BJP and NCP. NCP leader Mitkari said that as a party worker, I feel that if a big leader like Prakash Ambedkar comes along with Ajit Dada, the equations will change in Maharashtra, but this is my personal wish. In such a situation, it is clear that the check-mate game has started in Maharashtra politics.
What will be Pawar’s comeback in NCP?
After the Lok Sabha elections, many of Ajit Pawar’s MLAs are now trying to leave him and join Sharad Pawar’s NCP. Sharad Pawar said that some MLAs can also be taken, but Ajit Pawar is now finding himself alone in this game of politics. The uncle refused to take him back because he no longer trusted him. In such a situation, the good reputation of Ajit Pawar is going to be further eroded in the assembly elections. In such a situation, if BJP breaks alliance with NCP, it will be left alone.
