The Shiv Sena may have secured an additional Lok Sabha seat from the BJP as a condition for a pre-poll alliance, but faced with the prospect of a likely blow-back, has loaned the BJP's incumbent MP who will now be its official candidate. On Tuesday, the Shiv Sena inducted sitting BJP MP from Palghar, Rajendra Gavit, and immediately announced his nomination for the Lok Sabha polls. In 2018, the Shiv Sena's Chintaman Vanga, the son of then BJP MP Srinivas Vanga, whose death led to a by-poll, had lost a keenly-contested fight against Gavit. Vanga was expected to be the Sena's nominee from the seat. However, BJP functionaries and cadre were upset over the seat being given away to the Shiv Sena. Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray said Vanga would be fielded in the Assembly elections and added that similarly, two Union ministers, Dr Subhash Bhamre and Suresh Prabhu, had joined the BJP from the Sena. Gavit said he was joining the Shiv Sena on Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis' instructions. He will now face-off against his old political adversary Baliram Jadhav of the Bahujan Vikas Aghadi (BVA), which is led by Virar strongman Hitendra Thakur. Jadhav has been supported by the Communist Party of India (Marxist), which has a base in areas like Dahanu and Talasari. In the 2018 by-elections, Jadhav, who had been elected to the Lok Sabha in 2009, was at number three. He had lost the 2014 elections to Chintaman Vanga. Incidentally, Gavit had jumped ship to the BJP from the Congress before the by-elections. He was a minister of state in the Prithviraj Chavan regime. Srinivas Vanga too said he had decided against contesting the Lok Sabha elections and was looking at fighting the state Assembly polls due later this year. Public works (public undertakings) minister Eknath Shinde said Gavit had been nominated on Vanga's demand to ensure that the Sena-BJP alliance came to power in Maharashtra and the Centre. STATE OF AFFAIRS

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