Bharatiya Janata Party leader and former Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has written to his successor Uddhav Thackeray of the Shiv Sena, demanding that Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s photographs be included in state government advertisements. The BJP and the Sena were allies before falling out over a proposed power-sharing deal after the Assembly elections in October.

The saffron party claimed that the prime minister’s photo has been missing from state government advertisements ever since the Maha Vikas Aghadi – the alliance of the Shiv Sena, the Nationalist Congress Party, and the Congress – came to power in November. Fadnavis, who also put up his letter on social media, claimed that excluding the prime minister’s photograph violates Supreme Court orders.

Fadnavis said the top court had issued orders on May 13, 2015, and March 18, 2016, saying publishing prime minister’s photographs in government advertisements was mandatory. After studying the court orders, the state information and public relations department issued a circular on August 11, 2017, about carrying the photographs of the prime minister and the chief minister in government advertisements, Fadnavis added.

The BJP leader pointed out that the rules were violated when an advertisement about the Pradhan Mantri Annadata Aay Sanrakshan Yojana carried only Thackeray’s photograph. “Requesting you [Thackeray] to instruct the department concerned to ensure that the Supreme Court’s orders are followed in the advertisements which will be published henceforth,” added Fadnavis, the leader of Opposition in the legislative Assembly.