Precursor to BMC election? Sena will go it alone in Kolhapur polls

MUMBAI: Close on the heels of Uddhav Thackeray's announcement that Shiv Sena is keen on winning power in Maharashtra on its own steam, the party's Kolhapur unit has decided to part ways with BJP for the October civic elections.
The Sena will contest the Kolhapur municipal corporation elections on its own, senior party functionary Arun Dudhwadkar said at a news conference on Sunday.Dudhwadkar is in charge of the party affairs in Kolhapur district. Matoshree could well be considering the Kolhapur polls "as a laboratory' to gauge the mood before bidding a final adieu to BJP in the 2017 Mumbai and Thane civic polls, said experts.
In an interview with Saamna last month, Uddhav said the Sena was keen on consolidating its electoral base in Maharashtra so that the party could come to power in the next assembly election on its own strength. Uddhav made it clear to Saamna that Shiv Sena extended support to BJP in 2014 to avoid political instability.
The Kolhapur unit of the Sena is peeved with state minister Chandrakant Patil for "ignoring' them and choosing Tara Rani group, a local outfit, as poll partner. Sainiks from the Kolhapur unit said Patil's overtures to the Tara Rani group are aimed at cutting down the Sena to size. Patil, who hails from Kolhapur, is seen as the BJP's Maratha face in southern Maharashtra, including Kolhapur, which is the nerve centre of the cooperative movement. Earlier, Dudhwadkar held prolonged talks with Sena MLAs, district level functionaries and senior party workers on the party's strategy for the Kolhapur civic polls. The 81-strong Kolhapur civic body is slated to go for polls in October.
"We will fight the Kolhapur elections on our own strength. We will win a comfortable majority in the civic body,' Dudhwadkar added. He could barely conceal his pique over BJP's decision to ditch the Sena in Kolhapur.
Patil's move dump Shiv Sena is part of BJP's strategy to deepen its organizational roots vis-a-vis the Sena in southern Maharashtra, said a state BJP source.
The Maharashtra BJP chose Kolhapur as the venue for a crucial party conclave held in June. Shah, who addressed the event, urged party functionaries to close in on the Congress-NCP's cooperative movement bastions, including Kolhapur, while working on expansion plans. "We want to deepen our electoral base in Kolhapur district, minus the Sena. The Kolhapur civic elections are an opportunity for the party to strike out on its own,' said a BJP functionary.