BJP’s ally trouble surfaces in state with RPI ‘concerns’

Nagpur: On the day BJP parted ways with its ruling partner PDP in Jammu and Kashmir, ally trouble surfaced in Maharashtra too. The ever-sulking Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray put the BJP on notice, saying he will work to install a ‘Sena CM’ next year in the state, while a smaller NDA affiliate, RPI, voiced concerns that it has been denied its share of power.
RPI leader and Union minister of state for social justice Ramdas Athavale was in the city on Tuesday to call on the family of Unamant Ramteke, a veteran Republican leader who died a couple of days ago. After consoling the bereaved family at their Untkhana residence, Athavale spoke informally to the media, making it clear that he was upset that RPI did not get its due share of power in the state government.

“The RPI played a major role in getting the BJP to power in the state. But I regret that my party got little by way of representation in the state government,” he said, adding even posts of chairmanship of state-owned corporations or cabinet berths were not offered to the RPI. “I have had talks with the BJP leadership and hope the situation would be corrected soon,” said Athavale.

Around 2014, besides RPI led by Athavale, several others like Raju Shetty’s Swabhimani Shetkari, Mahadeo Jankar’s RSM, and Vinayak Mete’s Shiv Sangram parties had joined hands with the BJP. Now, while almost all these allies are unhappy with the BJP, Shetti is the only one who has left the NDA to join the Opposition combine. It’s another matter that these smaller allies do not matter much to the BJP since not even a single MLA was elected from these parties.

Athavale, despite the failure of his party in elections, was sent to the Rajya Sabha on the BJP quota, and even given a ministerial post at the Centre, fulfilling his long-cherished dream. Many see his attempts to pressurise the BJP in the light of talk going around of a possible cabinet expansion in the next 15 days. The speculation gained momentum with chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, who just returned from a US and Canada trip, calling on Governor C Vidyasagar Rao on Tuesday.

Amid all this, Sena chief Thackeray was at his acerbic best on Tuesday at a function to mark the 52nd foundation day on his party in Mumbai. Snubbing the BJP, whose president Amit Shah recently called on Thackeray and renewed the offer to continue the alliance, he said the Sena would not rest till it formed its own government next year in the state. “We will have the saffron flag flying and a Sena CM soon,” said Thackeray, telling party men to be ready for possible simultaneous elections in December for Lok Sabha and the state Assembly.