A look at the contentious Shiv Sena-BJP relationship

The relationship between the Shiv Sena and the BJP has been a contentious one over the years.

In 2014, the parties broke their 25-year alliance over seat-sharing and contested the Assembly elections independently. In January 2018, the Shiv Sena officially cut ties with the BJP. In the 2019 Maharastra Assembly elections, they decided to come together once again. The BJP won 105 seats and the Shiv Sena won 56 seats out of a total of 288 seats.

The BJP and its ally the Shiv Sena are currently tussling over the Chief Minister's post, with the Sena demanding a split tenure for the top post. The BJP has rejected this proposal. The Shiv Sena has suggested that the BJP had given written assurance to the party of rotation of the CM post. Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis asserted that he would return as CM and suggested that there was no "50:50" deal between the BJP and the Sena.

The influx of workers from other states into Mumbai has allowed the BJP to counter the Marathi 'asmita' (pride) that has come to represent the politics of the Sena, according to a Firstpost report. Moreover, for the second time, the Shiv Sena won fewer seats than the BJP in Mumbai.

There was also a Konkan clash between the BJP and Sena that strained the relationship between the parties. The BJP decided to fight the Sena for seats in the Konkan region's Ratnagiri, Sidhudurg and Raigad districts and the Sena may not have appreciated the friendly fight.

The BJP is the single largest party in Maharashtra but it cannot form the government on its own. It remains to be seen whether the two parties can come to an amicable agreement or whether a new alliance will rise in the state.