Amid bickering between the BJP and Shiv Sena over sharing of power in the next Maharashtra government, an NCP leader has come out with a cartoon taking a dig at the current state of affairs between the two ruling parties. In the cartoon, released by NCP spokesperson Clyde Crasto on Tuesday, the Shiv Sena’s poll symbol ‘bow and arrow’ is seen hanging over the BJP’s symbol ‘lotus’. The arrow is directed at the lotus in the cartoon. “There is a saying, hanging over the head…,” the cartoon caption reads in Marathi. In Marathi, there is a saying “dokyavarati tangati talwar”, which is equivalent to the English phrase – ‘sword of Damocles hangs over head’, implying that something bad is in the offing or one is faced with a threat. The Shiv Sena on Tuesday cancelled its meeting with the BJP on government formation, hours after Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis denied that the Uddhav Thackeray- led party wasassured the CM’s post for two-and-half years as part of apower sharing formula. Ever since results of the October 21 Assembly polls were out, Thackeray has been claiming that the 50:50 formula on sharing of power was “agreed upon” between himself, BJP president Amit Shah and Fadnavis ahead of the Lok Sabha polls. However, according to sources in the BJP, the discussion and agreement reached with the Sena on formalising the alliance ahead of the Lok Sabha polls was on “equitable distribution of power and not on the post of the chief minister.” The BJP emerged as the single largest party in the recently-concluded Maharashtra Assembly polls by winning 105 seats, much below the 145 halfway mark in the 288-member House. The Shiv Sena, NCP and Congress bagged 56, 54 and 44seats, respectively.
