Here's why Shiv Sena won't be splitting from the BJP any time soon

Mumbai: Relations between the Shiv Sena and the BJP are at an all time low following the incident involving Sudheendra Kulkarni, but the Sena is set to stay on in the BJP-led state government as well as the central government for now. While speculation was rife that the Sena might pull out of the government and ask its ministers to quit, the party has now decided to wait for some time.

According to senior party leaders, the Sena will decide on the ‘formal’ fate of the alliance with BJP after the Kalyan Dombivali Municipal Corporation (KDMC) polls that are scheduled to be held next month. The Sena and BJP are set to fight the KDMC polls separately.

“We will be the real opposition despite the fact that we are in the government. We will keep voicing our views and oppose government’s decisions that are not in public interest. We will continue to embarrass the government,” a senior Sena functionary said.

Sources in the party said that the party would also take a cue from the outcome of the Bihar polls. The party is contesting 150 seats against the BJP in Bihar.

“We might not win in Bihar. But, we hope that BJP fares badly. We want to see whether the Modi wave has died down or not. We will be in a better position to exit if it comes to that,” a Sena functionary explained.

Ties between the two parties have been under strain since last year when BJP decided to contest the Maharashtra assembly elections on its own. The Sena had earlier criticised the government on issues related to farmers.

Tensions between the two parties increased when the Shiv Sena boycotted all the functions at which Prime Minister Narendra Modi was present in Mumbai on 11 October. Uddhav Thackeray was in the Marathwada region to distribute aid to farmers’ families hit by the drought and the party issued a diktat to its elected leaders telling them not to attend the functions.

After the Shiv Sena forced Pakistani singer Ghulam Ali to cancel his event in the city, the party opposed the book launch of former Pakistani foreign minister Khursheed Kasuri on Monday. The party’s activists resorted to blackening the face of the organiser of the event, Kulkarni, which proved to be a source of embarrassment for the BJP-led state government.

The Shiv Sena has now told its cadre to return to its traditional form of street politics to take on the BJP.

“We managed to embarrass the BJP a lot. Why should we pull out of the government? The BJP can pull out if they have a problem with us. It is easier for us to corner the chief minister from within than outside. We will analyse the results of KDMC to judge the mood of the people. Then, we will be in a better position to take a call on the alliance,” said a senior Sena leader.

At present, the Sena has five cabinet and five state ministers in the Maharashtra state cabinet. However, BJP is the minor party in in the cash-rich civic body of Mumbai.

Political observers say that a split between the allies is likely closer to the Mumbai civic elections in 2017.

“But a lot depends on where Thackeray decides to draw the line. There are clear indications from BJP that the saffron alliance will run on its terms. So, it remains to be seen whether Thackeray has the courage to quit the government. He fears that BJP is trying to break his party. So, it seems that his all decisions are aimed at keeping the party undivided until 2017," Prakash Bal, a political analyst, said.