Polls: Shiv Sena wants to ride solo but BJP still wants to carpool

Uddhav Thackeray reportedly told the meeting that Sena would win more seats if it went solo while CM Devendra Fadnavis is willing for an alliance with Sena File picsThe game of oneupmanship between the Shiv Sena and BJP took a dramatic turn yesterday as the former gave a strong indication that it will go solo in the civic polls which will be held in smaller cities over next three months even as BJP insisted that the two parties should come togetherSena chief Uddhav Thackeray who met party MPs legislators and officebearers at his Kalanagar residence is said to have told the delegates to prepare themselves for taking on the BJP in the 212 civic bodies in 25 districts if their ally doesnrsquot fall in line Apparently Thackeray wants a bigger say in seatsharing with the BJP not only in the polls that were declared two days before but also in the major civic corporations like Mumbai Thane and Pune where the elections will be held in FebruaryMarch next year In all 4750 seats will go to pollsBJP wonrsquot play second fiddleUnwilling to play a second fiddle to the Sena BJP has already asked its leaders and cadres to take a decision on alliance at local level for civic polls The BJP does not want to be associated with the Congress or NCP either Sena wants the seatsharing talks to be controlled by the party chiefSena has Mumbai Thane Pune and many other bigger civic corporations on its mind where the BJP has increased its strength manifold over the two years In Mumbai BJP has more MLAs than Sena and in Pune Sena does not have a single MLA BJP is not ready to concede seats to Sena as per their 2012 seatsharing formulaSena can win more soloJust like BJP which thinks breaking alliance would help it land profits Sena too assumes that it would benefit more if it contested independently Thackeray made this clear to his men at the meeting On October 15 midday had reported about BJPrsquos desire to contest the BMC polls alone and would not settle for anything less than 100 seats if it allies with Sena Alliance will cast Sena 100 seatsThackeray reportedly told the meeting that Sena would win more seats if it went solo A leader who attended the meeting said that the chief underlined the importance of regional parties in statelevel politics ldquoThackeray gave us examples of bigger regional parties led by Mamata Bannerjee Trinamool Congress Mayawati Bahujan Samaj Party and Jayalalithaa AIADMK He said that BJPrsquos main agenda was to finish regional parties and we should not let it happen here in Maharashtrardquo said the leaderDescribing BJP as a party populated by defectors with a murky past the Sena president is said to have told delegates that there was no point in getting a bad name for the party by joining hands with the goondas goons who have made BJP their homeMeanwhile Sena MP Sanjay Raut said elections were discussed in the meeting but refused to part with more information ldquoUddhavaji will himself announce the decision if anyrdquo he saidBJP plays it downOn the other hand BJP took Senarsquos indication as a pressure tactic ahead of polls State finance minister Sudhir Mungantiwar said that Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis is very much willing for having an alliance with Sena ldquoIf we think of the past 25 years the two parties should come together We even had a meeting of senior leaders from both sides last week We decided that personal allegations should not be made from either side We also discussed a common code of conduct for the two partiesrdquo the minister said from NagpurLocal leaders want allianceHe said that the local leaders have been taking a decision on an alliance and most of them want a pact with Sena ldquoOnly those who are likely to lose their ward to the alliance partner demand that the pact be broken We contested together last time in Mumbai Pune and Thane but went separate ways in Nashik and got a beating thererdquoCongress dares Sena to break allianceChiding Shiv Sena the Congressrsquo opposition leader in the Assembly Radhakrisna Vikhe Patil challenged Uddhav Thackeray to break its alliance with BJP ldquoIf Sena is such a selfrespecting entity then it should sever ties with BJP In fact BJP insults Sena frequently Sena which is fooling voters by talking tough is hungry for power and it would go to any extent to remain part of this governmentrdquo said Vikhe Patil