Maharashtra Election: BJP's 'Batenge To Katenge' Slogan Making Things Uneasy For Mahayuti Allies

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's slogan, "batenge toh katenge" (divided we perish), has been adopted by the BJP for the Maharashtra Assembly election as a rallying cry for Hindu vote consolidation and to discourage caste-based voting.

However, the slogan has made the BJP's Mahayuti allies, the National Congress Party led by Ajit Pawar and the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena, uncomfortable.

The slogan, which promotes Hindu unity, resonates with the BJP's vote base and, according to senior leaders, is aimed primarily at preventing the division of Hindu votes as occurred in the Lok Sabha election, reported The Hindu.

This is especially important in the crucial Vidarbha region, where the BJP is directly competing with the Congress for many seats.

However, the BJP's full embrace of the strategy has caused problems for its allies for various reasons.

Pawar openly expressed his discomfort, stating two days ago, "I am not supporting it. I have said this several times. It will not work in Maharashtra. This may work in Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, or some other places."

The fact that his party has proportionately given the largest number of tickets to minorities in the state reflects his stance.

For Shinde's party, which is in an existential battle with the Shiv Sena (UBT), the slogan marks a reversal of efforts made over the past four months to encourage Muslim consolidation behind Uddhav Thackeray's Shiv Sena.

"The attempt has been to run a positive, affirmative campaign focused on welfare delivery, like the Ladki Bahin scheme. This fearmongering by the BJP is more likely to consolidate minorities behind the Maha Vikas Aghadi, rather than unite Hindu community voters who may not feel besieged and may continue to vote on caste lines," said a source.

An analysis by Shinde-led Shiv Sena of Assembly segments following the Lok Sabha election showed that crucial Muslim vote consolidation behind Shiv Sena (UBT) helped win certain seats.

For instance, in the Mumbai South Lok Sabha seat, sitting MP Arvind Sawant won by a margin of 52,000 votes, of which 46,000 came from the Byculla Assembly seat alone. This intense consolidation is a concern for Shinde's camp.

Shinde's government has been making efforts to reach out to the Muslim community, hoping to minimise the kind of consolidation seen in the Lok Sabha election. Shinde has set up a Commissionerate of the Minorities Development Department in Aurangabad, increased salaries for Muslim clerics, built Urdu Bhawans, and made funds available for Muslim-majority seats like Bhiwandi.

The discussion surrounding the slogan has gained so much traction that Union Home Minister Amit Shah, who was in Mumbai for the launch of the BJP's manifesto for the election, felt the need to clarify the matter.

"The Congress has, through various means, been raising the issue of castes in order to divide society. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has very clearly put across the point that if Scheduled Castes are a category, then they grow stronger as one; otherwise, there is fragmentation, and if Other Backward Classes are divided, they too grow weaker. As for 'katenge', everyone knows under whose administration most of the riots have occurred in this country," he said.

The BJP has its reasons for pushing the slogan, rooted in the aftermath of the Maratha reservation movement and the Opposition's accusations that the party seeks to undermine the Constitution to end reservations.

For the BJP's allies, a campaign less polarising, based on welfare schemes and allowing space for other players to secure minority votes, seems like a better option in the fragmented political landscape.

The effectiveness of the slogan will only be tested at the polls on November 20.