CHIEF MINISTER Devendra Fadnavis is likely to approach Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray later this week for holding seat-sharing talks ahead of Lok Sabha and Assembly elections next year. Sources in the BJP said that the party is likely to treat the Sena as an equal partner while determining the seat sharing formula for the 48 Lok Sabha and 288 Assembly seats. Advertising “The electoral rout in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh is an eye-opener for the BJP. It shows that the party will have to redraw its strategy both politically and administratively,” said a BJP leader. In a meeting held by the top BJP leadership on Tuesday, after results were announced Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Telengana and Mizoram polls, the party decided to offer Sena its support in the Ahmednagar Municipal Corporation. Shiv Sena, which had retained the civic body, had won 24 and BJP 14 of the 68 seats in the Ahmednagar civic polls on Monday, results of which were announced on Monday. “The party will offer Sena its support in the civic body,” said a senior BJP leader. Advertising “The Congress-NCP alliance in Maharashtra automatically sets the stage for the Shiv Sena-BJP alliance. However, BJP’s electoral setback in five Assembly states may embolden the Shiv Sena to strike hard bargain when it comes to the number and choice of seats in the Lok Sabha and Assembly polls,” the leader added. When contacted, a Sena Cabinet minister said: “We are not against pre-poll alliance. But we expect that these election results will tame the BJP central leadership. It should treat regional parties as equal.” BJP insiders said another strategy of the party would be to reach out to the smaller local outfits across Maharashtra. These include Ramdas Athawale’s Republican Party of India (A), Mahadeo Jhankar’s Rashtriya Samaj Party and Sadabhau Khot of Swabhimani Shetkari Party, who have pledged support to the NDA. “Assembly elections are contested on local issues. In 2019 Lok Sabha elections, people will vote on the development plank. The people will vote in favour of Prime Minister Narendra Modi,” said Athawale. But not everybody in the BJP displayed the same optimism. BJP Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Kakade said: “The BJP should give up its Ram temple and Hindutva agenda. It should return to the development agenda.” However, BJP state president Raosaheb Danve, said: “We are a cadre based party. We have seen both good and bad times. We are confident of doing well in the Lok Sabha and state elections.”

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