Maharashtra: Cracks in ruling Mahayuti alliance? Here is what Deputy CM Eknath Shinde said – ‘Our war against…’

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has rejected reports of cracks between the three parties in the ruling Mahayuti alliance. The Shiv Sena chief asserted that the coalition of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the Shiv Sena and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) was focused on the development of Mumbai and the rest of Maharashtra.

“All three parties are working together. There’s no cold war. Our war is against those who work against development,” Shinde said at a meeting of Shiv Sena at Worli on Tuesday evening.

Shinde asked the Shiv Sena workers to be “battle-ready” for the upcoming local bodies election in Maharashtra. “You have to be battle-ready and prepare for the upcoming municipal elections with full force. To achieve a high flight, one must soar like a hawk, not become a traitor. We’ve just crossed the sea, and there’s still a long way to go,” Shinde said.

Elections to 29 municipal corporations and several municipal councils are expected to be held later this year. However, the three alliance partners have yet to formally announce whether or not they will contest the municipal polls together.

“We gave a shock and body blow (to Shiv Sena-UBT) in the assembly polls and now we have to do the same in the civic polls. The Shiv Sena has to grow,” Shinde said. The schedule for the civic polls, including the all-important Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), is yet to be announced.

Cracks in Mahayuti?

There have been reports of possible cracks within the Mahayuti alliance less than three months after it won the Maharashtra elections by a landslide. Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut claimed that a ‘parallel government’ was functioning within the state administration.

“If the government continues to operate in this manner, political chaos will escalate further,” he told reporters.

The alleged rift within the ruling BJP-Shiv Sena-NCP alliance is being attributed to the withdrawal of ‘Y’-security cover to some MLAs, among other flashpoints. While the cover has been downgraded or withdrawn for legislators representing all parties, the number is highest for the Shinde-led Shiv Sena, which is upset over the move.

What is the lastest flashpoint?

In 2022, after Shinde joined hands with the BJP in 2022, the Maharashtra government gave Y-security cover to 44 state legislators and 11 Lok Sabha MPs who had supported him. The cover has now been downgraded or withdrawn for all Shiv Sena MLAs and other leaders, including key aides of the party chief, who are not ministers, according to media reports.

As many as 20 Shiv Sena leaders are reportedly affected by the security downgrade, which is said to be highest among all three Mahayuti constituents leading to the rift, a report in NDTV said.

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said earlier that the decision on security cover is taken by the Security Review Committee. “There is no political interference in the decisions by the committee. Therefore, no one should do politics on it,” he said.

The latest flashpoint comes amid speculation of a tussle within the ruling Mahayuti alliance partners over various issues, especially between Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Deputy CM Eknath Shinde. The two leaders swapped CM and Deputy CM roles after the alliance scripted a historic victory in assembly elections held in November.

Eknath Shinde’s DCM medical aid cell

Shinde’s move to set up a “DCM medical aid cell” at Mantralaya added to speculation about the rift. Shinde’s close aide Mangesh Chivate will head the new medical cell.

The “DCM medical aid cell” was set up despite the existence of the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund (CMRF) cell. The development, probably the first of its kind in the state, comes amid a tussle between Mahayuti allies in the Devendra Fadnavis-led government over various issues, including guardian ministers’ appointments, news agency PTI reported.

CM Fadnavis on Tuesday defended the setting up of a medical aid cell at Mantralaya by Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, saying that there was nothing wrong with it as the objective was to help people.