Athavale keeps SP, Sena-BJP guessing

Alliance partners edgy after RPI (A) chief met Gadkari last week and Bal Thackeray yesterday. He, however, refuses to confirm or deny possible saffron alliance

With only a few months left for the civic polls, Republican Party of India chief Ramdas Athavale is keeping both his allies and opposers guessing about who he will finally side with. While his party is officially a member of the Republican Left Democratic Front (RLDF), which has the Samajwadi Party and Left parties as members among others, he has been seen cosying up to the Shiv Sena-BJP alliance of late. The Dalit leader is leaving the waters muddy by refusing to confirm or deny a possible alliance with the saffron brigade.


Joint venture? RPI (A) chief Ramdas Athavale met Shiv Sena chief
Bal Thackeray at his Bandra residence yesterday.
Pic/Sayed Sameer Abedi

The RPI (A) chief met BJP National President Nitin Gadkari at the party office last week and met Shiv Sena supremo Bal Thackeray at his Bandra residence yesterday, causing much consternation to his allies. Rais Shaikh, secretary, Samajwadi Party, said, "We have been told by Athavale that he wants all the opposition parties to come together and fight the corruption which has been a characteristic of the Congress and the NCP."

Athavale, however, seems to have other plans. "There is a strong feeling that Shivshakti and Bhimshakti should come together. I have been asking members of my party for their opinion on this and most of them are in its favour," he said. When Shaikh was informed about this, he said, "We can't be part of any alliance that has communal forces. We will go it alone if Athavale joins hands with the Sena-BJP combine." While the Sena mouthpiece, Saamna, has been publicising the scheduled meeting between Athavale and Thackeray for a week and claiming that the Shivshakti-Bhimshakti alliance would give them another term in the BMC, Athavale himself is undecided.

"I am in talks with the saffron party, but I haven't yet decided whether to support it or not," said Athavale, adding that he isn't apprehensive of supporting them either. "When Mayawati can join hands with the BJP in Uttar Pradesh, what's the harm in me doing so here. After all, there are no permanent enemies in politics."
The RLDF has 11 MLAs in the state, of which three are from the SP, four are from the Peasants and Workers' Party and nil from the RPI. SP has seven corporators in the BMC, while RPI has three.