Precarious Alliance

Shiv Sena ties up with Dalit leader Ramdas Athavale

Some months after he took over as the executive president of the Shiv Sena, Uddhav Thackeray started sending feelers for an alliance to all prominent leaders in the Dalit community. Despite meetings, things never went beyond handshakes. Now eight years after that first step, Ramdas Athavale, president of his own faction of the Republican Party of India, has joined hands with Uddhav to forge an alliance called Shiv Shakti Bhim Shakti.

They have drawn up an ambitious plan to tour the state and tell their activists the benefits of such an alliance. Though the Sena’s alliance partner of two decades, the BJP, continues to be with the former, it does not seem too happy with Athavale on board.

Anyone who is familiar with Athavale’s brand of opportunistic politics knows that he is not trustworthy. There is no telling when he will walk out of an alliance, or strike a deal with another. For decades, Athavale has been close to Sharad Pawar and it has brought him numerous gains. However, his current disenchantment stems from the fact that after his defeat in the 2009 Lok Sabha polls, neither Pawar nor the Congress offered him any political rehabilitation package.

Athavale was keen on going to the Rajya Sabha, but those he sided with in the polls refused to give him a hearing. It is also known that he does not like being without power for a long time.

It is still early days for Uddhav to start celebrating the Shiv Shakti Bhim Shakti alliance. For, there is no guarantee that the fragmented Dalit community that has been in search of a strong leader in Maharashtra will listen to Athavale. Over the years, Athavale’s political stature has been reduced to a mere caricature, due to his pre-electoral alliance bungling and  failure to meet the ambitions of the growing Dalit population. In fact, whether it is Athavale, Prakash Ambedkar or Jogendra Kawade, none of them has been able to effectively influence Dalit voters. Meanwhile, BSP Chief Mayawati has arrived in Maharashtra with a bang. Though the BSP is yet to make any electoral gains in the state, the Dalit community believes she is the only leader who can bind the community together across India.

There is also talk that it is Pawar who has pushed Athavale into the Sena’s nest. In recent times, Pawar has been pushed to a corner by the Congress and it is believed that he is keen on getting back at them. Pawar shares a close friendship with Shiv Sena Chief Bal Thackeray, so Athavale’s shift towards the Sena was expected. Pawar wants to send a strong message to the Congress that the latter can no longer take the state’s Dalit vote for granted.

DalitRamdas AthvaleShiv Sena