Will Maharashtra’s Maha Vikas Aghadi Emerge A National Player?

Video Editor: Sandeep Suman

The Shiv Sena-NCP-Congress have finally formed the government in Maharashtra. We have seen a fair amount of drama in this episode – so much so that a family who has never held an Assembly seat broke the tradition as Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray took oath as the Chief Minister of Maharashtra.

An interesting thing to note is that before the swearing-in ceremony, the alliance issued their 'Common Minimum Program' (CMP). It was produced as a serious piece of paper. The alliance is stressing upon the importance of the CMP because they say that the three parties will work to protect the secular framework of the country. They also said that any issue which attacks the Constitution of the country will be discussed amongst the three parties who will also not work outside the CMP.

The CMP's introduction itself says that the alliance will stress upon protecting the secular framework. It is also mentioned that they will work especially to help the underpriviledged, farmers, women, SC/ST and minorities.

However, the moment a coalition government is formed, someone upends the hour glass. Conflict of ideologies and interest and local complexities are the usual reasons cited for their downfall.

The BJP stands defeated at the moment but it will look to overthrow the government because losing a seat like Maharashtra does not augur well for the party. BJP have a huge opportunity and will look to attack fiercely as the Opposition. On the contrary, the coalition already have an Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) ready to tackle the BJP, owing its credit to Sharad Pawar.

What's Next?

The Shiv Sena will be attacked on the grounds of Hindutva. In such a scenario, escaping the clutches of the BJP will be a challenge.

The aftermath of the Maharashtra drama will spill over to Bihar. The question of whether Nitish Kumar will also rethink his alliance with the BJP will be debated heavily.