Ajit Pawar rebellion: BJP endorsement came at Amit Shah’s meeting with Shinde, Fadnavis

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Pawar’s swearing-in as Maharashtra’s second Deputy CM on Sunday and the consequent split in the NCP bodes well for the BJP in more ways than one. First, the party has secured and strengthened its electoral footing in the state ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. More importantly, party leaders indicate that Ajit Pawar’s entry marks a culmination of the revenge for the Shiv Sena’s move in 2019 to exit the alliance with the BJP and the subsequent formation of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) with the NCP and the Congress. Both the NCP and the Shiv Sena (UBT) now stand weakened.

A senior BJP leader told The Indian Express that the move was part of the 2024 strategy. “Till today, the BJP had doubts about its prospects in the 2024 elections as many in the party dread a situation when the Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena, the NCP, the Congress, and other smaller parties would come together to fight the 48 seats to the Lok Sabha. The Opposition would have been a formidable force for the Assembly election next year.”

The situation now stands altered, according to the BJP functionary. “In the state, the party does not have to rely on (Chief Minister Eknath) Shinde’s Shiv Sena entirely. Even if there is disqualification (after the split in the Sena, the decision currently rests with the Speaker of the Maharashtra Assembly), the government will be comfortable.”

With the Congress’s victory in Karnataka acting as a driving factor for Opposition parties to come together on a common platform, the BJP has stepped up its attempts to reach out to its erstwhile allies and firm up its existing partnership with smaller parties.  “The coming days will be action-filled. One will see several initiatives from both the government and the party aides to consolidate our position in the run-up to the polls,” said the BJP leader.

Ajit Pawar’s move has also fuelled speculation of a possible reshuffle in the Union Council of Ministers, with leaders from Maharashtra, including several MPs in the Shinde camp, taking on a central role. Although Fadnavis has previously shown his disinterest in leaving state politics, party sources indicated that the national leadership might ask him to reconsider his position.

With the BJP leadership all set to revamp the state units, including the appointment of new state presidents, there is buzz that some current ministers could be moved out of government and redeployed for organisational work.