Even if another ‘bolt from the blue’ was never ruled out during the tiny one-day gap since the Supreme Court verdict and subsequent Fadnavis-Ajit Pawar resignations came in, thankfully for the Indian democracy, nothing of that sort happened and finally Maharashtra has got a new government and a Chief Minister named Uddhav Thackeray. Keeping all ‘untouchabilities’ away, the tri-alliance of Shiv Sena-NCP-Congress has decided to walk together where the bedrock for sustenance and continuance has been declared as the pursuance of a Common Minimum Programme. Political skulduggery or coming together of diametrically opposite parties were never uncommon in Indian politics, but not like the one seen in Maharashtra in terms of magnitude. While others have faded fast from public memory, this episode will perhaps be remembered for long and more importantly, as it might play the role of a game-changer in the political landscape in immediate months by setting itself as a classic example of opposition coalescence, which is a lamentable omission in the current Indian polity. This would of course depend on the durability of the coalition which is purely heterogeneous in character and the impression it manages to create among people through their announced promise of ‘everything better than before’. But surely, it would not be too surprising if the Maharashtra drama proves itself as an epicentre of national repercussions. 
It has been a saturation of all full-length weird political manoeuvres, the height being the nocturnal events, underscoring a maxim once more that although politics is an art and science of infinite possibilities, there are some lines which mustn’t be overstepped. And if that happens, great amounts of setback and disrespect await, as now being tasted by BJP, inarguably the strongest political force at the moment. It is apt recalling that BJP used to abbreviate NCP as ‘Naturally Corrupt Party’ before their short lived ‘honeymoon’ with Ajit Pawar who was also nothing short of an ‘epitome of corruption’, going by their definition. Now that curtains have fallen and the junior Pawar is back again in NCP fold after ‘absolving’ himself of all corruption charges, gaze will fall on the balance sheet. Clearly, it’s the BJP the only loser and it would be difficult to pick an instance from recent past when it encountered such a terrible loss of face and now there is also a growing feeling that the folly might very well negatively influence the forthcoming Delhi and Jharkhand state elections.
But standing at the end of November 2019, it must be said that from now onwards, Indian politics is not going to be an one-sided affair after Maharashtra spectacle and it’s an opportune moment for the opposition block  to derive inspiration and explore possibilities. 

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Kenter Joya Riba

(Managing Editor)
      She is a graduate in Science with post graduation in Sociology from University of Pune. She has been in the media industry for nearly a decade. Before turning to print business, she has been associated with radio and television.
Email: kenterjoyaz@easternsentinel.in / editoreasternsentinel@gmail.com
Phone: 0360-2212313

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