The past speaks for itself. Amid the Hanuman Chalisa row that refuses to die down, senior BJP leader Ashish Shelar revealed last week at a newspaper event that there had been a plan to induct the NCP into the Devendra Fadnavis-led BJP and Shiv Sena government in 2017, but the scheme didn’t materialise because the BJP wanted the Sena in, too, alongside the NCP. “We didn’t want our like-minded friend out,” said Shelar. His party senior Sudhir Mungantiwar said that the BJP has been repenting the move of not keeping the Sena out, which ultimately joined hands with the NCP in 2019. Fadnavis revealed the purpose behind the 2017’s failed proposal: “It was aimed at isolating the Congress because there was a similar effort all over the country.” The former chief minister’s statement comes at a time when the Congress is still struggling to make the best of being with the Sena and the NCP in the Maharashtra government.

The Congress may dismiss Fadnavis’s revelation as yet another ploy to boost the ‘doubtfuls’ in the century-old party, or take it seriously to mull over what may be in store in the future while many national and regional players are trying to isolate it, one way or the other. The Congress still holds the key to the stability of the MVA government, which was formed essentially to deny the BJP yet another term in Maharashtra.