Will BJP, Sena go separate ways after KDMC success?

Itrsquos not without reason that the KalyanDombivli municipal elections have evoked such excitement almost like mini Assembly polls For one the BJP and Shiv Sena put on a never before seen display of enmityIn the end the Sena emerged as the winner but couldnrsquot stop the BJP from increasing its vote base by a massive margin More importantly though the success seen by both parties in this election could pave a future where they choose to fly solo again perhaps in the Mumbai and Thane civic polls as wellAlso Read Will KDMC polls reunite cousins Uddhav and Raj ThackerayShiv Sena increased its hold in the KDMC from 31 seats in 2010 to 52 seats this year PicSameer MarkandeWith 52 seats the Sena has emerged on top 21 seats more than it had won last time The party may have its mayor in KDMC again this time without the BJPrsquos crutches if the MNS and some independents come to its rescue Negotiations were underway was all senior leaders said unwilling to come on recordSena minister Eknath Shinde said the voters did not fall for false promises ldquoWe have worked hard for the people here Some people had made KDMC elections a prestige issue The people have shown them real powerrdquo he said adding that the party has not decided anything on future alliances as yetRead Story Maharashtra local bodies polls BJP amp Congress top winners MNS virtually wiped outThe BJP might not be thrilled with making second place but campaigners led by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis can at least derive some satisfaction in having increased the partyrsquos hold in the KDMC significantly mdash from nine in 2010 to 42 this year It remains to be seen whether the BJP will join hands with the Sena or continue the rivalry while sitting in the OppositionThe path aheadThe KDMC polls have again proved that fighting separately can be beneficial to both the BJP and the Sena Now that they have tasted success in KalyanDombivli will they take each other on in the Mumbai and Thane polls as wellWith just 15 months to go for elections in the Mumbai and Thane corporations where the BJPSena alliance still holds the two parties are expected to give this advantage serious thoughtFor the record Fadnavis has said repeatedly including in an exclusive interview to midday lsquoWhy didnrsquot they return awards when a scholarrsquos arm was cut offrsquo October 30 that the BJP would have no issues in forging an alliance with the Sena in MumbaiBut he also told this paper that the decision to form alliances largely depended on how the local party workers felt about it and this was why the parties had gone their separate ways in the KDMC and Kolhapur pollsIf that yardstick is applied in Mumbai as well then local BJP workers donrsquot seem to be in the mood to go along with the Sena either Even if they agree to it the BJP could face a major hurdle in sharing Mumbairsquos 227 seats with the Sena because the city has more BJP legislators than the SenaThe BJP is unlikely to settle for anything less than a 5050 share State BJP chief Raosaheb Danve said he was confident that the party would be in power in at least 31 municipal corporations and councils mdash the results for many of these bodies including in KalyanDombivli and Kolhapur were declared on MondayldquoThe voters have responded to the BJPrsquos agenda of development We are committed to make the state betterrdquo he told reporters In Kolhapur the BJP allied with a local outfit Tararani Front emerging as the single largest combine with 32 out of 81 seatsHere the Sena remains a nonentity with just four seats but it is the Congress a surprise gainer with 27 seats along with the NCP 15 that will pose a challenge to the BJP with a postpoll pactOther partiesOn the other hand in the KDMC the CongressNCP combine was never considered a serious threat but still performed more dismally than expected They had together won 29 seats in 2010 but managed just 6 this time Congress4 and NCP2Civic polls Hung house in KalyanDombivali CongressNCP lead in KolhapurThe MNS also witnessed a downslide from 27 sitting corporators to just nine seats this time Despite this downfall party leader Raj Thackeray has the power to decide the Senarsquos fortune with a possible alliance In the past Raj had supported his estranged cousin in some civic bodies in Thane districtDespite this role of kingmaker the KDMC results must weigh heavily on Rajrsquos mind particularly as he looks ahead to the Mumbai and Thane civic polls In the BMC elections in 2012 some of the Senarsquos votes had titled in his favour but these same voters did not come to his rescue in the Lok Sabha and Assembly polls last year Perhaps Rajrsquos last hope once again lies in Mumbai