Infighting in the Congress has now threatened ally Shiv Sena (UBT)’s high stakes in the Lok Sabha constituencies in Mumbai and the rest of Maharashtra, where every Muslim vote counts for the Opposition bloc’s nominees. The explanation the Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge has given for not fielding Arif Naseem Khan in Mumbai North Central has led to the Thackeray Sena issuing a strong rebuttal because it has been blamed for Khan’s displacement. Shiv Sena (UBT) said it had no business interfering in Congress’s affairs, adding the ally could still name Khan because it had three more days to file nominations.

Threat to perception