An alliance always means trouble. Who better than the Congress to understand this. Mostly in a commanding position whenever in government, the Congress in Maharashtra finds itself in a precarious state these days. It may be the weakest of the three MVA partners in Assembly strength, but despite being vastly experienced in matters of governance and coalition politics, it hasn't been able to compete with the Shiv Sena and Nationalist Congress Party. Why? The answers may lie within the Congress set-up in the government and in its organisation.  

After much bickering and sulking, the Congress ministers in Maharashtra say they have managed to make the CM understand their party's ideas about making the MVA people-friendly. The emphasis here is on the ideas that the All India Congress Committee (read: Mrs Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi) has conceived and want implemented by the government, with the party's participation. The Congress argues that this scheme augurs well for the poor in the time of COVID-19. But in Maharashtra, neither the Sena nor NCP showed much interest in the Congress proposal because the bigger partners have their own ideas and agendas. Thackeray comes with a scheme of his own, but before finalising any move he ensures that he gets a word of advice from NCP boss Sharad Pawar. Senior Congress leaders in the cabinet feel alienated, ignored and insulted when they find the CM relying heavily on Pawar and the bureaucrats. The Congress has accumulated a series of grievances in the past four months. The party expected its woes to end after meeting the CM, which political observers are calling wishful thinking.