Under Control, Says Sena, Amid Every Sign That It Really Isn't

The trouble cannot be wished away - nor can the fact that the Shiv Sena has emerged as the weakest link - at least on the surface of things.

As a crisis towered above the Maharashtra landscape today, the Shiv Sena claimed that the developments are a blip that will be resolved before the day is over.

But the trouble cannot be wished away - nor can the fact that the Sena has emerged as the weakest link - at least on the surface of things. It is a senior Sena minister, Eknath Shinde, who has decamped for Surat, taking 21 MLAs with him. That they are sheltering in place in a BJP-ruled state is a dead giveaway of what Mr Shinde is attempting to engineer.

"Attempts to topple the state government using Eknath Shinde will not succeed. Shinde is a loyal party worker who has participated in agitations with us several times. He is Bala Sahab's soldier," said the Sena's Sanjay Raut. He further claimed that communication has been established with Mr Shinde.

The government of Uddhav Thackeray has three components: his own party, that of Sharad Pawar, and the Congress. Last evening, it emerged that in crucial elections to the legislative council (the Upper House), cross-voting by members of the Sena and the Congress lifted the BJP to win five of 10 seats that were at stake. The cross-voting was a repeat of a similar transgression just days ago which enabled the BJP to a Rajya Sabha result that exceeded what its own numbers allowed.