'Alliance with Congress or MIM won't be accepted': Devendra Fadnavis issues ultimatum to BJP leaders on local-level alliances

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has issued a stern warning to BJP leaders accused of forging local-level alliances with the Congress and the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM), saying such moves violate party discipline and will invite strict action, according to India Today.

Reacting to reports of post-poll tie-ups in municipal councils, Fadnavis said the BJP’s senior leadership had not approved any alliance with either the Congress or the AIMIM and made it clear that such arrangements would not be tolerated.

“I am making it very clear that any alliance with the Congress or the AIMIM will not be accepted. If any local leader has taken such a decision on their own, it is wrong in terms of discipline and action will be taken,” Fadnavis told a news channel. He added that directions had already been issued to reverse these alliances.

The remarks come after reports that, following civic elections held last month, BJP leaders in some municipalities entered into post-poll arrangements with rival parties. In Ambernath, BJP leaders allegedly joined hands with the Congress and the Ajit Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) under the banner of the ‘Ambernath Vikas Aghadi’ to form the municipal council leadership.

A similar political arrangement was reported from Akot in Akola district, where BJP leaders are said to have aligned with the AIMIM and other parties in the local municipal council.

Amid the controversy, the Congress sought to distance itself from claims of a direct alliance with the BJP in Ambernath. Congress leader Sachin Sawant dismissed the reports as misleading, saying the arrangement was being wrongly portrayed.

“In Ambernath, setting aside party affiliations and symbols, various party workers have formed the Ambernath Development Front against the corruption perpetrated by the local-level Shinde Sena. Independents are also included in this. Therefore, news reports claiming that Congress and BJP have come together are incorrect. Please take note,” Sawant wrote on X.

The developments have triggered resentment within the Shiv Sena, which is part of the ruling coalition with the BJP in Maharashtra but has been kept out of power in the Ambernath civic body.

Balaji Kinikar, an MLA from the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena faction, described the arrangement as an “unholy alliance” and accused the BJP of abandoning its political stand.

“The party that spoke of a Congress-free India is now ruling with the Congress. This is nothing but stabbing the Shiv Sena in the back,” he alleged.