Shiv Sena pulls the plug on Pune pattern

“I resigned as per instructions of the party leadership,” Mokate said after submitting his resignation to Mayor Rajlaxmi Bhosale. Sena leader Dilip Gawade too resigned from the post of Chairman,City Improvement Committee. BJP members heading the PMC Education Board and Legal Committee will resign in the next two days.

The alliance had come into existence on March 17,2007,in a bid to keep the Congress out of power in the civic body. Though their divergent policies brought the alliance to a logjam on many occasions,it thrived defying all political logic. Despite a lot of focus brought to bear on it,the Pune pattern survived even during the recent Lok Sabha elections.

There were several hiccups though. The Congress had moved the Bombay High Court to get the opposition leader’s post in the PMC as it was,for a good part of the alliance period,given to the BJP. Even as recently as April,during the Lok Sabha polls,the Congress had tried unsuccessfully to persuade its coalition partner NCP to snap ties with BJP-Sena in the PMC. The NCP’s rationale behind continuing the Pune pattern was ensuring development of the city. The NCP had also been maintaining that it was not a political alliance at all.

Mayor Rajlaxmi Bhosale of the NCP said the alliance was formed in view of a special political situation. “We will continue to involve all political parties for development of the city. The break-up will not hamper the objective of development,” she said.

BJP leader in PMC Vikas Mathkari said they had contributed a lot to development of the city when in power. “Now on,we will continue to work for the development cause by sitting in the opposition,” he said,adding that the issue of bad roads and simplifying property tax were taken in the last few years.

The Pune pattern was not really much of a hurdle during the Lok Sabha polls,as the NCP and Shiv Sena were not in the fray for Pune seat,where the Congress had taken on the BJP.

However,for the Assemby polls,the Shiv Sena and the BJP will have to take on the Congress-NCP alliance in eight Assembly segments in Pune city. It is here that the tie-up among parties in the opposite camps may have led to problems.

On the breaking of the Pune pattern,Congress leader Ulhas Bagul said,“The alliance was unnatural and was certain to end.”

The hiccups
* The alliance had come into existence on March 17,2007,in a bid to keep the Congress out of power in the civic body.
* NCP,Sena and BJP had tied up to float the pattern.
* The Cong had been telling the NCP to snap ties with the saffron alliance.
* The NCP had continued it saying it was needed for the development of the city.