All is not well in Maharashtra political circles as the Palghar bypoll results have further distanced BJP and Shiv Sena. Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Rout has described BJP as its biggest political enemy in party mouthpiece Saamana. He also sarcastically remarked that BJP paid tribute to late MP Chintaman Wanaga by defeating his son Shrinivas Wanaga in Palghar bypolls.
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In fact, BJP nominee Rajendra Gavit won by a margin of 29,572 votes in the by-election held on 28 May. The result in the tribal-reserved Lok Sabha seat located adjoining Mumbai was declared a few days later on May 31. He even went on to say,”The BJP’s plan is to stay with the Sena in power and try to weaken it by using power and money. The BJP used its resources to ensure Shiv Sena’s defeat in the Palghar Lok Sabha bypoll.”
Anyhow, it doesn’t seem to be the end of the road for Shiv Sena although they have lost the Palghar Lok Sabha bypoll. Interestingly, they have managed to get more votes in the Assembly seats falling under the parliamentary constituency when compared to the 2014 Maharashtra elections.
They can definitely find solace with the fact that the party got over 60,000 more votes, while despite winning the seat, the BJP saw its vote count dropping in the tribal-dominated constituency. In other words, a comparison of the total votes polled in the six Assembly seats of the Palghar Lok Sabha seat in the 2014 state elections to that of the Lok Sabha bypoll held last month shows Sena’s vote share has gone up in the area.
There is no denying the fact that BJP has been trying to reinforce its state unit in Maharashtra and in this regard they are competing against NCP, Congress, and the Shiv Sena. The state BJP unit has been very particular in fighting against Shiv Sena and becoming self-dependent in the state.
This has irked the Shiv Sena leader. No doubt, Uddhav Thakcherah lacks the mannerism of his father late Balashaheb Thackeray. The Shiv Sena defeat in Palghar is no surprise and definitely highlights the BJP narrative in the state. The shameless attack on Narendra Modi and Amit Shah is actually an example of their helplessness in the state political front.
