After public spat with Sena, BJP meet avoids talking about

Image
Press Trust of India Mumbai
Last Updated : Oct 15 2015 | 6:57 PM IST
After its public spat with Shiv Sena, the BJP today steered clear of discussing about ties with the saffron ally at a meeting of party legislators and functionaries where it chose "only" to deliberate upon the achievements of the Fadnavis government over the last year.
Several top BJP leaders had said ahead of the meeting yesterday that the worsening relations with the Sena, which is part of the ruling coalition in Maharashtra, were likely to come up for discussion.
A senior leader had gone to the extent of saying that the meeting would discuss the probability of snapping ties with the Sena, which had on Tuesday said BJP was free to opt out of the coalition if it was bored of its brand of "nationalism" and "patriotism", raising questions about the continuance of the party in the state government.
However, no such thing happened today and BJP spokesman Madhav Bhandari said," The meeting was only held to discuss various achievements of the state government and how do we put them in front of the people. There was no mention of the Shiv Sena anywhere in the meeting."
"Last year we won elections on October 19 and took oath on the 31st. Hence, we have decided to hold various programmes from October 19 to 31 wherein we will interact with people and tell them what the government has done," he said.
Relations between the two saffron allies have come under renewed strain after Shiv Sainiks blackened the face of Sudheendra Kulkarni, a former BJP strategist and organiser of Pakistan's former foreign Minister Khurshid Mahmud Kasuri's book launch event on Monday.
Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had voiced serious displeasure over the incident and said the state would not be allowed to be reduced to a "banana republic".
Amid the growing unease in their ties, Shiv Sena had, in a snide remark yesterday, sought to remind Prime Minister Narendra Modi of his Godhra past after he termed as "unfortunate" the Dadri lynching incident and cancellation of Pakistani ghazal singer Ghulam Ali's concert in Mumbai following Shiv Sena's threat of disrupting it.
*Subscribe to Business Standard digital and get complimentary access to The New York Times

Smart Quarterly

₹900

3 Months

₹300/Month

SAVE 25%

Smart Essential

₹2,700

1 Year

₹225/Month

SAVE 46%
*Complimentary New York Times access for the 2nd year will be given after 12 months

Super Saver

₹3,900

2 Years

₹162/Month

Subscribe

Renews automatically, cancel anytime

Here’s what’s included in our digital subscription plans

Exclusive premium stories online

  • Over 30 premium stories daily, handpicked by our editors

Complimentary Access to The New York Times

  • News, Games, Cooking, Audio, Wirecutter & The Athletic

Business Standard Epaper

  • Digital replica of our daily newspaper — with options to read, save, and share

Curated Newsletters

  • Insights on markets, finance, politics, tech, and more delivered to your inbox

Market Analysis & Investment Insights

  • In-depth market analysis & insights with access to The Smart Investor

Archives

  • Repository of articles and publications dating back to 1997

Ad-free Reading

  • Uninterrupted reading experience with no advertisements

Seamless Access Across All Devices

  • Access Business Standard across devices — mobile, tablet, or PC, via web or app

More From This Section

First Published: Oct 15 2015 | 6:57 PM IST

Next Story