CM at ease as Sena loses grip

Shiv Kumar

May has been a lucky month for Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. After walking out unscathed from a crashed helicopter, Fadnavis showed he had what it took to cut troublesome ally Shiv Sena to size.

Deft political maneuvering by the Chief Minister ahead of elections to four important local bodies in the state ensured that the BJP stole a march over its regional ally. The CM’s men kept the Shiv Sena hanging on till the last minute over sharing of seats for the newly constituted Panvel Municipal Corporation and finally decided to go it alone.

While the national party swept the polls in Panvel, the Sena, which rules both neighbouring Mumbai and Thane, scored a duck. The Congress and the NCP, too, had little to show in this new city where a slew of infrastructure projects, including the Navi Mumbai airport, are being constructed.

The Shiv Sena barely managed to mark its presence in the Muslim-majority townships of Bhiwandi and Malegaon despite party chief Uddhav Thackeray working hard to enrol members of the minority community into his outfit.

“The recent civic elections have only shown us that the Shiv Sena is nothing outside Mumbai and Thane... It is sad to see that the ink of editorials from a Prabhadevi lane (where ‘Saamana’ is located) has gone waste,” Ashish Shelar, chief of the Mumbai unit of the BJP, said.

Minorities back with Cong

Unlike the Shiv Sena, the Congress is pleased as punch with the results from Bhiwandi and Malegaon, indicating that the Muslims are returning to it after a brief flirtation with other outlets.

The Grand Old Party managed to get 28 of the 84 seats in Malegaon while the NCP and the Janata Dal (Secular) came close behind with 27. In the former textile town of Bhiwandi, which has been transformed into a logistics hub due to its proximity to Mumbai, Thane, Pune and Nashik, the Congress took 47 of the 90 seats.

Regional outfits such as the Samajwadi Party and the Owaisi brothers’ AIMIM, which had eaten into the Muslim vote share of the Congress in the last Lok Sabha and Assembly elections, returned to the fringes.

The BJP did try its best to woo the minority vote by fielding prominent Muslim leaders in both towns. While it won nine seats in Malegaon, it bagged 19 in Bhiwandi. BJP leaders were, however, not too disheartened by the results. “We have improved our tally from 0 and 8 in Malegaon and Bhiwandi, respectively. The results show that Muslims are also coming to the BJP,” party leader Shelar said.

Bhujbal gets Kasab treatment?

Chhagan Bhujbal, former Maharashtra minister jailed on corruption charges, is getting the treatment terrorist Ajmal Kasab received. The ruling dispensation is putting out that non-vegetarian food and alcohol are being smuggled in for Bhujbal and his nephew Sameer just when their supporters are gearing up for protests. The duo has sent out messages to journalists that they were being given the Kasab treatment. Just before his execution, stories planted in the media said the 26/11 terrorist had demanded biryani in prison.