Mumbai: Is the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) sending feelers to Uddhav Thackeray, chief of the Shiv Sena (UBT)? This is the question being asked in political circles with senior BJP leader Chandrakant Patil, who is known for his proximity to Union home minister Amit Shah, praising Thackeray on Tuesday at an event.
Patil, who is also a senior cabinet minister, said Thackeray did extensive campaigning of the state for the just-concluded Lok Sabha elections and the benefits were reaped by his allies in the MVA, Congress and NCP (Sharad Pawar). Patil pointed out that Thackeray's whirlwind tours of the state despite the extreme heat is to be viewed in the context of his health.
Thackeray had undergone heart surgery and several stents have been implanted in him. Patil has sought to hit two birds with one stone; on the one hand he had praised Thackeray and on the other he had made it appear that the Congress and the NCP (Sharad Pawar) were dependent on him.
In good measure, Patil also pointed out that when Thackeray was with the BJP the Shiv Sena had won as many as 18 seats in the Lok Sabha and now with the MVA partners Congress and NCP (Sharad Pawar) he had bagged only half the number - Nine. This is a clear message to Thackeray that the latter stands to gain more politically with the BJP on his side. Patil has urged Thackeray to introspect on this aspect of his party's performance.
The Shiv Sena (UBT) had contested 21 Lok Sabha seats , but won only nine while the Congress contested 17 seats and won 13. The NCP (Sharad Pawar) contested 10 seats and bagged eight. Patil's observations are also to be seen in the context of the fact that the BJP could not on its own strength reach the 272 mark in the LS polls and today it is totally dependent on Nitish Kumar and Chandrababu Naidu and its allies in the NDA. The BJP is now trying to seek out an erstwhile ally like the Shiv Sena led by Thackeray
The billion dollar questioning is whether Thackeray will respond positively to the overtures from the BJP. He is still extremely bitter with the BJP for pulling down the MVA government helmed by him. In his campaign speeches he poured pure acide on PM Modi at every meeting. Even now, the Shiv Sena (UBT) spokesperson Sanjay Raut continues to be hostile towards Modi, partly because he was sent to jail by the Enforcement Directorate under the BJP government.
Patil also noted that Muslims had voted for the Shiv Sena (UBT) in a big way which was one of the reasons for its success. Citing an MNS leader, Patil said the colour of Thackeray's victory was not saffron but green.
Meanwhile, Raut has claimed that Nitish Kumar and Naidu were not happy with the portfolio allocation done by Modi. They were "dissatisfied souls," he newspersons on Tuesday. Recalling Modi's description of Sharad Pawar as a "bhatakti atma" (wandering soul), Raut said Pawar will not rest till the BJP governments at the Centre and the state were dislodged.
