After Janata Dal (U), BJP’s oldest ally Shiv Sena on Wednesday sought to put pressure on the party seeking a meeting of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) to decide on the name of a prime ministerial candidate, days after Nitish Kumar fired his salvos against Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi.
Comparing NDA constituents to horses of Arjun’s chariot, Shiv Sena, which has its own axe to grind against Modi for his warm relations with its rival, Raj Thackeray, cautioned that BJP should take the allies into confidence on the prime ministerial choice or else there could be a “Mahabharat” (squabble).
“BJP has the right to name its PM candidate but it cannot do so on its own steam. This (NDA) is Arjuna’s chariot and has many horses (allies).
“Every horse is important. Or else, there will be a different Mahabharat and the chariot wheel will get stuck,” the Shiv Sena said in an editorial in its mouthpiece ‘Saamana’.
With the chasm between BJP and JD(U) widening over Narendra Modi as the prime ministerial nominee, the Sena also insisted on convening a meeting of the Opposition alliance to end the prevailing “confusion”.