Reality seemed stranger than fiction as Shiv Sena rebel Eknath Shinde – whose rise from an autorickshaw driver to a Sena strongman is the stuff legends are made of – took oath as the chief minister of Maharashtra last Thursday (June 30). His crowning brought to an end a 10-day-long political drama in the western Indian state. But even this final act of the drama had several twists and turns.
Most political observers saw the fall of the Uddhav Thackeray-led coalition government in Maharashtra as the precursor to the return of Devendra Fadnavis to the office of the chief minister, which he had held not so long ago in the past. In fact, his supporters went into celebration mode soon after Uddhav submitted his resignation to the governor.
But their celebrations were premature. The BJP high command decided not to anoint Fadnavis, as this would have amounted to cheating Shinde whose rebellion had triggered the fall of the Maha Vikas Aghadi coalition government in Maharashtra. He had risked everything, including own political career. He has also earned the wrath of Uddhav loyalists who are unlikely to forgive him in a hurry.
So Shinde had to be rewarded even if it meant scuttling the ambitions of Fadanvis. He had played a key role in this political drama, first by inciting the rebellion against Uddhav and then by ensuring the safety of Sena MLAs, including those who went against Uddhav.
Once Fadanvis got wind of the BJP high command’s intentions, he sought to save face by announcing that he would not be a part of the government led by Shinde and instead support it from outside. Even this was not to be, as his name was soon announced for the post of deputy chief minister and he had to, willy-nilly, take the oath of office.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah said in a Twitter post: “At the advice of Shri JP Nadda, Devendra Fadnavis has shown a big heart and has decided to join the government in the interest of the people of Maharashtra.” Prime Minister Narendra Modi also spoke to the former chief minister in a bid to smooth his ruffled feathers. The message from the BJP high command was, however, clear that Fadanvis had to fall in line irrespective of his feelings.
The episode has lessons for Uddhav as well. The original mandate of the 2019 elections in Maharashtra was for a Shiv Sena and BJP coalition government – but, driven by his own ambitions, Uddhav ignored the mandate and went on to form a coalition with Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party. It was an opportunistic alliance with a complete ideological mismatch between the partners. Lust for power was the only glue keeping them together.
In order to stay in power, Uddhav had to make several compromises which triggered murmurs of discontent in the Shiv Sena and also took a toll on his own image. Now, after being dislodged from power, it remains to be seen if the son of Bal Thackeray has learnt any lessons from the sordid political drama which brought about his fall. And, also, whether Eknath Shinde will be able to live up to the tag of being Maharashtra’s Man of Destiny.
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