Will Devendra Fadnavis' govt survive without Shiv Sena in Maharashtra? BJP seems confident

Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut on Monday dropped hints of his party's considerations to quit the alliance

While Shiv Sena is threatening to pull back from the alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party in Maharashtra, the latter in unfazed. The BJP believes that the Devendra Fadnavis government will survive whether or not Shiv Sena decides to withdraw its support from the coalition government.

Here is what makes the BJP confident:

With 122 seats in the 288-seat Maharashtra assembly, the BJP is 23 seats away from the magic figure of 145 to enjoy a simple majority. The Shiv Sena, with 63 seats, is the junior partner in the coalition government. Despite having 12 ministers in the 39-member council of ministers in the Fadnavis government, the Shiv Sena has been a troublesome ally. Now, with the party sounding threats, the BJP is preparing its plan B.

The rumors over BJP warming up to the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) ruffled feathers in the Shiv Sena camp. While the Congress has 42 seats in the assembly, NCP has 41. The two parties are a joint opposition but cracks are developing in their united camp. A leader of the BJP who did not wish to be named told newspapers that his party already had a Plan B. If the Shiv Sena quits the alliance, the BJP will depend on the support of smaller organizations and independent members to achieve simple majority.

According to the leader's quote, the BJP, despite being in a position to consider a fresh partnership with the NCP led by Sharad Pawar, has decided to look towards independents. The BJP is quoted as saying that the party will not depend on any one political party to cobble up the numbers but will instead garner the support of smaller parties and independents. Apart from the four major parties, Maharashtra has 2 MLAs from AIMIM, 3 MLAs from Bahujan Vikas Aaghadi, 1 each from Bharipa Bahujan Mahasangh (BBM), Communist Party Of India (Marxist) , Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS), Rashtriya Samaj Paksha (RSP) and Samajwadi Party (SP).

The state has seven independent candidates, all of whom, the BJP hopes to get the support from. Three more MLAs are from Peasants And Workers Party Of India. The BJP hopes to stitch support together from various smaller quarters instead of depending on one partner who, like Shiv Sena, may threaten to topple the government. The Shiv Sena, meanwhile, as expected refused to state in clear words whether or not it intended to withdraw from the coalition. For now, as party MP Sanjay Raut tweeted, it continues to be "wait and watch".

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