Out of NCP, Congress and Shiv Sena, the
biggest setback goes to Shiv Sena. It is the biggest loser in spite of
registering growth, in seats and in vote share.
Many in the party would be rightly thinking,
that just for 5 seats, they lost the 'senior ally' in Maharashtra tag, and that
too, by a huge margin. Yes, they are the second largest party in Maharashtra
assembly but their 63 seats are nowhere near to BJP's 122 seats, given the fact
that BJP had been the junior partner of Shiv Sena in Maharashtra and was ready
to do so even this time, agreeing to contest on lesser number of seats than
Shiv Sena in the failed seat-sharing talks.
And BJP had reasons and rights to ask for
so, because it was not too outrageous a demand. It had performed exceedingly
well in the Lok Sabha elections cornering maximum number of Lok Sabha seats
from Maharashtra that sends 48 members to the parliament.
In 2014 LS polls, BJP had won 23 seats with
27% vote share while Shiv Sena had 18 seats with 21% vote share. It was a
considerable improvement for both. BJP had taken up its tally from 9 LS seats
and 19% vote share in 2009 to 23 seats in 2014. Shiv Sena also did very well
taking up its tally from 10 seats to 18 seats with 17% vote share in 2009.
But Shiv Sena's performance was not at par
with its junior ally of the past, when seen in comparison with BJP's rising
graph in the state, when it had to be surpassing what BJP achieved. Even in
2009 assembly polls, the junior partner of the alliance had won two seats more
(46) than Shiv Sena's 44 seats. And when it simply outperformed everyone in the
Lok Sabha polls registering 8% increase in vote share and over 150% increase in
seats, it was right to expect for more.
BJP had a symbolic edge over Shiv Sena with
2009 assembly election results but the 2014 LS polls outcome placed it much
ahead of all others, including Shiv Sena. Shiv Sena had to realize it and
should have appreciated when BJP didn't ask for sky-high price for its
electoral edge.
But, their ego had to blind them all.
Alleging BJP of the 'big brother' attitude, they tried to act 'bigger brother'
and the talks collapsed.
This was when BJP had Narendra Modi and the
Modi Factor advantage as well, that drove home a clear majority to a
non-Congress party for the first time in electoral history. Probably, Shiv Sena
strategists had become so convinced of the hypothesis that Modi Wave had
receded based on the bye-election outcomes, that saw that all the 'green' was
going to adore them only. But Maharashtra and Haryana (in Haryana, BJP got
clear majority and is going to form the government there, from 4 seats in 2009
to clear majority in 2014) tell Modi Wave is still very much here.
It was for Modi Wave only, that BJP,
despite not having as strong an organizational structure in whole Maharashtra
as Shiv Sena had, could outperform so brilliantly its 'senior partner' from the
recent past.
So brilliantly, that Shiv Sena is now
slated to become BJP's junior partner in Maharashtra.
So brilliantly, that BJP is now dictating
the terms, even if it is 23 seats short of the majority mark. The NCP offer of unconditional
outside support has taken whatever sheen Shiv Sena was left with in a
post-election scenario of hung assembly.
BJP won more than what Shiv Sena was
offering, 119 seats. Had it been in the alliance, even if with 5 more seats,
BJP would not have been able to win so many seats. What BJP was demanding was
modest. What Shiv Sena's arrogance gave it was grand. And what Shiv Sena lost
was grander, costing it the 'senior alliance partner' position, and the
leverage in the national politics.