Dismissing the oft-repeat claim made to the contrary by the Shiv Sena, Union Home Minister and senior BJP leader Amit Shah said on Sunday that his party had never promised the Chief Minister’s post on a rotational basis as part of the 50:50 power-sharing agreement reached between his party and the Sena in the run-up to 2019 Maharashtra Assembly polls.
Breaking his silence for the first time over his party’s long-time ally Shiv Sena’s accusation that the BJP had reneged on its party to give the chief minister’s post for two-and-a-half years out of the full five years, Shah said: “They (Shiv Sena) say that at a closed door meeting, I had made them a promise to them about sharing the chief minister’s post with themI had not made any such promise to Uddhavji as claimed by him and the Shiv Sena”.
“I do not do anything in private nor have I indulged in backroom politics. Whatever I do, I do in the midst of people. I am not scared of any one. Whatever I want to say, I say it in public. I did not make any such promise to Uddhavji. In fact, the Shiv Sena used the photographs of Modiiji that two and a half times bigger than their president. The Shiv Sena sought votes from the people in the name of Modiji,” Shah said.
Speaking at a function after inaugurating a 300-bed private hospital-cum medical college set up by former chief minister and senior BJP leader Narayan Rane at Sidhudurg in coastal Konkan region, Shah said: “I was the BJP President when my party and Shiv Sena contested the 2019 State Assembly elections as an alliance. We contested the elections under the leadership of Devendras Fadnavis. Both the pqrties sought votes in the name of Modiji. I addressed rallies with Shiv Sena leaders. Modiji also addressed rallies with the Sena leaders. At each public meeting, i asked the people to elect the NDA to power. I repeatedly said that Devendra Fadnavis would become the chief minister. Why did not say anything about the sharing of the chief minister’s post? I repeat we had not given any assurance to the Shjv Sena on the chief minister’s post”.
It may be recalled that on February 18, 2019, the Shiv Sena and BJP had –at q closed door meeting held at Thackerays’ “Matoshri” residence formalised the seat-sharing pact for the following Lok Sabha polls in the State. At that meeting, the BJP and Shiv Sena had also decided on a 50:50 ratio for sharing seats for the State Assembly polls.
Subsequently, the Shiv Sena had claimed that the BJP had also agreed to share the chief minister’s post on a rotational basis, a claim that the then Amit Shah-led party dismissed saying that no such agreement had reached between the two saffron alliance partners at that meeting. The disagreement between the two parties on the sharing of the chief minister’s post led to a break-up between the two saffron alliance partners and the subsequent post-poll power sharing arrangement among the Shiv Sena, NCP and Congress.
Slamming the Shiv Sena for severing the ties with the BJP and joining hands with the NCP and Congress to form a government in Maharashtra after the 2019 Assembly polls, Shah said: “We ( BJP and Shiv Sena) and won the elections together under the leadership of Devendra Fadnavis. But, after the Shiv Sena gave up the ideological mornings of late Balasaheb Thackeray, joined hands with the Congress and NCP to form a 3-party autorickshaw government. When we annulled Article 370, they (Shiv Sena) hesitantly welcomed the move. Same thing happened when our government decided. .. We were never scared of any one at any point of time” .
Drawing parallel with what happened in Bihar where the BJP had contested the elections in alliance with the JD(U), Shah said: “ We had all along said that Nitish Kumar would be the next chief minister of Bihar. After the election, we – despite the fact our party had larger number than the JD(U) –Nitish Kumar the chief minister as we had promised”.
“The BJP was founded on ideological grounds. We had formalised our ideology for the sake of politics. I would like to tell my Shiv Sena friends that you have not come to politics to promote and practise your ideology. After the death of Balasaheb Thackeray, the Shiv Sena has been deviating from its ideology. The people of Maharashtra know all about you now. But, I would like to say that we will not follow your footsteps. If we had followed your footsteps when Devendra Fadnavis, the Shiv Sena would not have survived till now,” Shah said.
Shah Heaped praise on former chief minister Narayan Rane—whose political outfit Maharashtra Swabhiman Party merged with the BJP in the run-up to the 2019 State Assembly polls -- for continued efforts to develop the latter’s home district of Sindhudurg.. He assured Rane that his party would dump or ditch the latter under any circumstances, but would treat him with full dignity.
