The BJP has tried almost all the recipes to win the Maharashtra Assembly elections. From pushing the Hindutva agenda to trying to create mystery on the Chief Minister’s face. All this is probably because the BJP came to power after Uddhav Thackeray’s coup, but the results of the Lok Sabha elections left the top leaders in shock.
On the occasion of the announcement of the BJP’s manifesto, Union Home Minister Amit Shah created suspense by adding the ‘for now’ clause to Eknath Shinde’s position as Chief Minister. Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis had already declared himself out of the race, but after Amit Shah’s statement, Eknath Shinde also had to say that he too is out of the race for the Chief Minister’s post.
Voting will be held for 288 seats in the assembly elections in Maharashtra on November 20, with results expected on November 23.
The question is why did the BJP have to play this game during the elections? And if both Eknath Shinde and Devendra Fadnavis are out of the race, will any new face of the Chief Minister emerge from the grand alliance?
Mahayuti Chief Minister, but why is his face disfigured?
After the fall of the Mahavikas Aghadi government, the BJP appointed Devendra Fadnavis, who was the Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Deputy CM, but this decision of the high command was not liked by many BJP leaders of Maharashtra, and after the Lok Sabha results. elections, Devendra Fadnavis The resignation offer was also part of the same sentiment.
Not declaring the face of the Chief Minister in the elections is part of the strategy of all parties. Today, this is what the Mahayuti ruler and Mahavikas Aghadi share. Uddhav Thackeray definitely wanted him to be declared CM face of MVA, but there too Sharad Pawar and Rahul Gandhi are working on their own strategy.
When the question was raised, Devendra Fadnavis had said many times that the 2024 Maharashtra Assembly elections will be held under the leadership of current Chief Minister Eknath Shinde. But after the elections, the Mahayuti Chief Minister must be elected based on seats alone. In a way, Eknath Shinde’s cards have already been erased because the BJP is contesting for maximum seats.
After hearing Amit Shah’s statement on the occasion of the announcement of the BJP’s resolution letter, Eknath Shinde must have felt the same as Devendra Fadnavis must have felt sad at the thought of becoming deputy CM.
BJP leader Amit Shah had said in Maharashtra: “Right now our Chief Minister is Eknath Shinde, but after the elections we will all sit and discuss this.” This was a contextual explanation of Devendra Fadnavis’ statements.
So what, Eknath Shinde was also forced to give a statement. In a special conversation with Aaj Tak, he said, “I am not in the race for the post of Maharashtra CM, but it is also certain that the CM will be from Mahayuti only.”
What was the BJP afraid of?
Now if questions arise in your mind like why did BJP play such a game, then there can be many answers, for example:
1. Did the BJP decide to hide the Chief Minister’s face for fear of opposition to power? The Lok Sabha election results did not favor the BJP, for many reasons, but there also seems to be a wave against the government.
2. Has the BJP lost faith in the Hindutva agenda? The BJP’s defeat in Ayodhya in the Lok Sabha elections was interpreted in a similar manner. But, in the Maharashtra elections, there was a lot of debate over UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s line, “If we divide, we will cut off,” and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s, “If we are one, we will be safe.” Like Grand Alliance power-sharer and Deputy CM Ajit Pawar, leaders like Pankaja Munde and Ashok Chavan have also distanced themselves from this agenda.
3. Did the BJP fear results like the Lok Sabha elections? Did the BJP fear that if the people of Maharashtra gave Eknath Shinde the same verdict as in the Lok Sabha elections, Uddhav Thackeray’s camp would get the benefit of sympathy?
4. If Eknath Shinde and Devendra Fadnavis are out of the race for the Chief Minister’s post, will the BJP be fighting the elections against Prime Minister Narendra Modi? The BJP had done the same experiment in the 2023 assembly elections, but after the Lok Sabha election results, doubts also arose about Modi’s magic; However, things have changed to a great extent with Haryana’s return to power.
