MUMBAI: The announcement of the BJP-Shiv Sena alliance is taking time. Congress too has postponed announcement of its candidates for the Assembly election, while the NCP has postponed releasing its manifesto saying that the party shall do it along with other alliance members at some later time.
Officially there are several odd reasons being given for these delays. But, the real reason, party workers confide, is the un-auspicious period of “Pitru Paksha”.
The fortnight between ‘Anant Chaturdashi’ and ‘Ghatasthapana’ is the time when Shraddha Karmas are undertaken and the time is considered un-auspicious. This has held back all the parties in the state from going ahead with poll-related work like the announcement of candidates or alliance.
This un-auspicious period will be over this Saturday (September 28) hence, the political actions are likely to gain momentum post-Sunday, political observers have said.
Meanwhile, Shiv Sena’s Rajya Sabha MP and executive editor of party mouthpiece Saamana, Sanjay Raut on Tuesday said that the seat-sharing negotiations of the saffron alliance are more complex and tougher than Partition that India and Pakistan went through in 1947.
“Maharashtra is so big. This division of 288 seats is more terrible than the Partition of India-Pakistan,” Raut said.
“If we were in the Opposition instead of being in the government, the situation would have been different,” he said and added, “Whenever it is decided, we will inform you.”
Sources from both the parties have confirmed that the seat-sharing talks are now being handled directly by Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis and Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray.
On this backdrop, Raut’s statement led to some flutter. However, state BJP president and revenue minister Chandrakant Patil said that the discussions were progressing well and brushed aside Raut’s comment, saying that, he is a good writer so he gives such examples but working out the seat-sharing formula will not be that difficult.