The silence looming over the Shiv Sena and BJP camps over the last month has had a telling effect by way of soured relations within the two-and-a-half-decade-old alliance. History tells us that though there were umpteen occasions when the relations between the saffron partners were strained to such levels that it was presumed the alliance would fall apart, it was revived by the time-tested leadership from both sides, which helped to thaw the freeze and end the deadlock.

The situation appears to be different this time, as no leader is willing to take the first step to break the impasse over seat sharing. Since July 28, BJP and Sena leaders have not attempted to break bread with each other or even have a cup of tea and discuss the seat sharing issue. This has resulted in the stand-off precipitated by the BJP staking a claim on 159 seats based on its stellar performance in the LS polls — showing no signs of ending.