BJP looks to dump Shiv Sena after praise for Rahul Gandhi

New Delhi: The BJP is looking at a possible scenario of snapping ties with its oldest ally, Shiv Sena following increasing differences between the two. The saffron high command was seething after the Sena mouthpiece Saamana on Saturday praised Congress president Rahul Gandhi for his performance in Parliament during the no-trust motion.   The moment of Mr Gandhi hugging Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the floor of the House was highlighted on the front page of Saamana, with the headline in Marathi reading “Bhawa Jinkalans”, which roughly translates to “brother you stole the show.”

The Sena drew parallels with the World Cup football final and said, “The PM has emerged victorious like France but  the Congress president won many hearts like the runners-up Croatia.” With pressure mounting from the Maharashtra unit to do a PDP on the Sena, BJP president Amit Shah will be reaching Mumbai on Sunday to hold parleys with the state BJP leaders on the Lok Sabha polls and Sena issue. 

Apprehending that the Sena could take the first step to snap ties with the BJP before the general elections, the saffron high command has asked its cadre to work on each of the 48 LS constituencies in the state.  Shattering the BJP’s hopes of showcasing an “united NDA” and giving  assurance to Mr Shah to vote against the motion, the  Sena “as a second thought” abstained. 

The BJP was left red faced as  Mr Shah had personally called up Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray  to seek his support. The Sena had issued a whip to its MPs to be present in the House, only to withdraw it hours later.  Ties between the two had soured ever since BJP replaced Sena  as the  senior partner in the state. The Sena, which has decided to contest the Lok Sabha polls on its own but continues to share power with the BJP.