Reports of BJP-Congress alliance sparked a political row in Maharashtra (PHOTO: X)
Congress and BJP: Congress leader Sachin Sawant shot down rumours on Wednesday, January 7, about a Congress-BJP alliance in the Ambernath Municipal Council elections.
People started talking after whispers spread that Congress and BJP had teamed up just to edge out the Shiv Sena, which is led by Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde.
Sawant didn’t mince words. He said this isn’t just about Congress and BJP joining hands. Instead, leaders from different parties, along with independents, have come together under the Ambernath Development Front. Their main goal? To take on what Sawant calls the “corruption” of the local Shinde Sena. He stressed that news reports claiming a direct Congress-BJP alliance have it all wrong. “Please take note,” he posted on X.
Naturally, all this talk ruffled feathers in the Shiv Sena. The BJP and Shiv Sena run the state government together, but in Ambernath, things have shifted. Shiv Sena suddenly finds itself cut out of the power game.
Balaji Kinikar, an MLA from the Shinde group, didn’t hide his anger. He called the supposed alliance an “unholy” one and accused the BJP of stabbing Shiv Sena in the back.
“The party that once wanted a Congress-free India is now ruling with Congress,” he said.
The BJP isn’t having any of it. BJP vice-president Gulabrao Karanjule Patil fired back, saying if there’s anything truly “unholy,” it’s an alliance with this version of the Shiv Sena. Patil went further, blaming the Shinde group for 25 years of corruption in the area.
He said the BJP tried several times to work out a broader alliance with Shiv Sena in Ambernath, but got nowhere with its leadership.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis didn’t hold back. He made it clear he’s upset about the tie-up and told local BJP units to break off their alliance with AIMIM in Akot and with Congress in Ambernath.
“Let me be absolutely clear: We won’t accept any alliance with Congress or AIMIM. If local leaders went ahead and did this on their own, that’s a breach of discipline, and there will be consequences,” Fadnavis told a news channel. He said he’s already ordered those alliances to be scrapped.
Right now, the BJP, Ajit Pawar’s NCP, and Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena are running the state together as part of the Mahayuti government.
In Ambernath, after the polls, BJP teamed up with Congress and NCP to secure a majority of 31 seats, even though Shiv Sena got the most councillors, 27 in total.
The three parties say they joined hands to “save the town” and keep the administration steady. Shiv Sena isn’t impressed. They called the move “unethical and opportunistic.”
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