The same day last year (October 19), the Bharatiya Janata Party emerged as the single largest party in Maharashtra. The gamble of playing the electoral game without long-time ally Shiv Sena paid off, albeit with some shortcomings. The BJP was unable to reach the majority mark in the Assembly on its own, but it qualified for creating the second non-Congress govern- ment in the state. The victory was attributed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s developmental agenda and anti-incumbency against the Congress-NCP’s 15-year rule.

The NCP was quick to put the Sena under pressure by extending unconditional support from outside to the BJP, even before all the poll results were in. It said that its support would ensure political stability in the state where yet another election would be unaffordable. Meantime, Devendra Fadnavis, then 44, got Modi’s approval against the wishes of many stalwarts in the BJP, for leading a minority government. A sulking Sena chose to sit in the opposition, but joined the BJP government a month later without gaining much in bargain. The Sena continues to hold the short end of the stick even as Fadnavis’ ‘original’ Cabinet that took oath in a grand ceremony at the Wankhede stadium on October 31, completes a year in office.