Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Jan 20 (IANS) Tensions flared within the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) local unit on Tuesday as disgruntled party workers intercepted the vehicle of Maharashtra Minister Atul Save.
The protesters, primarily active in the Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar district, staged a demonstration demanding that the party “break the alliance” with Shiv Sena and NCP and contest the upcoming Zilla Parishad and Panchayat Samiti elections independently.
The high-voltage drama unfolded when Minister Atul Save was travelling through the city. A large group of party loyalists and prospective candidates blocked his car, surrounding it and raising slogans against the seat-sharing arrangements of the ‘Mahayuti’ alliance.
Witnesses reported that the workers expressed deep resentment over the perceived “sidelining of loyalists” in favour of alliance partners. The situation became heated as workers questioned the Minister on the distribution of ‘AB forms’ (party nomination letters), alleging that traditional BJP strongholds were being sacrificed to accommodate candidates from the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena and the Ajit Pawar-led NCP.
The primary grievance cited by the workers is the loss of opportunities for grassroots BJP members who have worked for years in their respective wards and Zilla Parishad circles. The protesters issued a clear ultimatum to the party leadership.
The workers demanded that the BJP fight the Zilla Parishad and Panchayat Samiti elections on its own strength. These elections are slated for February 5 and counting on February 7.
They argued that the alliance is demoralising the local cadre and that the party has enough individual strength to win without partners.
Minister Atul Save, while caught in the confrontation, attempted to pacify the crowd by assuring them that their sentiments would be conveyed to the party’s high command, including Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. Save noted that seat-sharing is a “strategic decision” made at the state level but acknowledged the intensity of the local workers’ emotions.
Elections to the Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar Zilla Parishad and Panchayat Samiti have been overdue for a significant period. As the state moves toward a poll-ready mode, the competition for tickets has reached a boiling point.
Since the formation of the MahaYuti government (BJP, Shiv Sena-Shinde, and NCP-Ajit Pawar), local-level coordination has been a major challenge. In many pockets of Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, the BJP and the Shinde-led Shiv Sena have been traditional rivals.
Forcing these two cadres to work together or asking one to vacate a seat for the other has led to multiple instances of internal rebellion.
As a major urban and rural hub in Marathwada, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar is a prestigious battleground. The BJP workers fear that if they concede seats now, they will lose their local organisational base to their alliance partners permanently.
This “Gherao” of a senior minister like Atul Save highlighted the growing gap between the state leadership’s alliance strategy and the grassroots reality of the party workers.
–IANS
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