After Maharashtra poll debacle, blame game begins in BJP-led Mahayuti

Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde and NCP's Ajit Pawar (File | PTI)

While the constituents of the Mahayuti are brainstorming over the debacle in the Lok Sabha polls, the acrimony between the Shiv Sena and the NCP has come to the fore, with both blaming each other for the defeat. The war of words between Shiv Sena’s Hemant Godse, who was defeated in the Nashik seat, and NCP leader Chhagan Bhujbal has led to a discussion on whether the alliance will last until the upcoming Vidhan Sabha polls.

During the election campaign, when journalists asked Hemant Godse whether he was receiving support from NCP’s Chhagan Bhujbal, he replied affirmatively and said that all the constituents of Mahayuti were helping him to win the elections. However, on June 4, when the results were declared, Godse lost to Shiv Sena (UBT) candidate Rajabhau Waje by 162,001 votes. Vaje secured 616,729 votes, while Godse got 454,728 votes. An upset Godse blamed Bhujbal for his defeat, claiming Bhujbal didn’t help him in the campaign.

Godse’s ire against Bhujbal is apparently due to the fact that Bhujbal, too, was a contender for a ticket from the Nashik seat. During the seat-sharing talks, the NCP (Ajit Pawar) expressed that it wanted to field Bhujbal from the seat, considering his connection with the local people and his stature as an OBC leader.

As a minister during the previous Congress-NCP governments, Bhujbal undertook several developmental works in Nashik. He has won Vidhan Sabha elections from the Yeola segment of the constituency, and his nephew Samir Bhujbal was an MP from this seat from 2009 to 2014. However, Godse was adamant about contesting from the seat. He claimed that since the Shiv Sena had won the Nashik seat in 2014 and 2019, the seat should once again go to the Shiv Sena.

The dispute between the two parties stalled the announcement of the candidate from the seat by Mahayuti, whereas the constituents of the MVA had unanimously announced Rajabhau Vaje as their candidate. Due to the delay in the announcement, a furious Bhujbal called a press conference and announced that he wasn’t interested in contesting the Lok Sabha poll. Godse’s name was announced just a few days before the last date of filing the nomination form.

Bhujbal responded to Godse by alleging that the Mahayuti didn’t allow him to address enough rallies. In Bhujbal’s view, the Mahayuti feared that since he belongs to the OBC community, using him as a star campaigner would be counter-productive. During the Maratha agitation, Bhujbal had made certain remarks which didn’t go down well with the agitators. Bhujbal said that his absence doubly damaged the Mahayuti as its candidates neither got Maratha votes nor the OBC votes.

Apart from the Nashik seat, such blame games have been reported from a few other constituencies as well. The post-poll bitterness between the constituents of Mahayuti indicates that the seat-sharing process for the Vidhan Sabha elections, four months later, is not going to be a smooth one. The BJP has to deal with the assertions of the Shiv Sena and the NCP for a greater number of seats.