Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Wednesday told ABP News that the Bharatiya Janata Party’s post-poll alliances with the Congress and the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen in two municipal councils were unacceptable and would be scrapped.
“It will have to be broken,” he told the news channel. “Accordingly, directives have been issued.”
The matter will be looked into and disciplinary action will be taken if party workers are found to have violated orders, Fadnavis said.
The BJP leader’s comments came after the Hindutva party formed local alliances with the Congress in Thane district’s Ambernath and the AIMIM in Akola district’s Akot.
After the civic elections in December, the BJP’s Ambernath unit formed the Ambernath Vikas Aghadi in an attempt to keep the Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde-led faction of the Shiv Sena out of power in the municipal council, The Indian Express reported.
The Shinde Sena had emerged as the single largest party in the December 20 polls, winning 27 of the 60 seats, just four short of a majority mark of 31.
The BJP-led post-poll alliance comprised all 14 members of the Hindutva party, 12 from the Congress, four of Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar’s Nationalist Congress Party group and one of the two independent councillors who had won the elections.
The BJP councillor was elected the municipal council’s president.
On Wednesday, the Congress dissolved its Ambernath block committee and suspended the 12 corporators for allying with the BJP without the approval from the party’s state leadership.
Similarly, the BJP formed a post-poll alliance with Asaduddin Owaisi-led AIMIM and other parties in the Akot Municipal Council.
While the BJP had won 11 seats in the 35-member council, the AIMIM secured five. With the backing of other parties, the alliance’s strength stood at 25, The New Indian Express reported.
The political front was registered with the Akola district administration ahead of the elections for the deputy mayor and committee posts scheduled for January 13.
You’ve read Scroll.
Now help sustain it
Scroll is funded by readers, not corporate owners. If you believe our work matters, support our newsroom. Become a member today!
We’re not driven by clicks or corporate interests – just honest, independent reporting. Keep us going. Support Scroll today!