Shiv Sena suffers from BJP-MNS deal that clears Karan Johar's 'Ae Dil Hai Mushkil'

MUMBAI: Karan Johar may have been forced to agree to the conditions -- a ban on Pakistani artistes in future films and paying Rs 5 crore as penance money for the martyrs in the Indian Army - set by MNS chief Raj Thackeray, but in reality it was the Shiv Sena, BJP’s ally in the state, that ended up as the worst loser.

The deal, struck by Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis with Thackeray, may have resolved the crisis, but it has also given MNS a bigger profile and more credibility in the state, things that won’t go down well with the Sena.

With elections for the cash-rich Brihanmumbai Civic (BMC) elections just three months away, a resurgent MNS eating into Sena votes is exactly what the BJP would like. “The government could have handled the MNS sternly, but they had other things in mind -- they wanted MNS to get the credit.

Since both the MNS and our party are vying for Marathi votes, their plan is to limit our growth by helping the MNS. The MNS is now the B team of BJP,” said a Sena leader, preferring anonymity. He stressed that the BJP has been adopting such a strategy for a while now.

In May this year, when there was a huge outcry over the implementation of the National Eligibility Entrance Test (NEET), Thackeray called up PM Modi and requested Centre’s intervention in the matter. With other states also asking for the same, the Centre immediately introduced an ordinance.