Sukhbir Badal, who is undergoing “religious punishment” at the Golden Temple, was fired upon from close range by a man identified as Narain Chaura

The BJP and the Congress went to the mattresses Thursday after the former accused Rahul Gandhi of being a “traitor” in a scathing attack naming the Leader of the Opposition, “some agencies of America” and billionaire George Soros in a “dangerous triangle that is trying to destabilise India”.

The Congress responded swiftly and strongly, condemning the attack on Mr Gandhi and also calling out another BJP MP, Nishikant Dubey, for “most derogatory words” targeting Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, the newly elected Wayanad MP, and the entire opposition party.

The chaos that followed Mr Dubey’s furious attack prompted chaos in, and a temporary adjournment of, the Lok Sabha.

BJP MP Sambit Patra set the ball rolling this morning with a heated press conference in which he declared, “In this triangle… on one side George Soros from America (and) some agencies of America and, on the other side is a big news portal named OCCRP (the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project, an Amsterdam-based news network) …” Mr Patra said.

“The last, and most important side, is Rahul Gandhi – a traitor of the highest order. I am not scared to say this word… I don’t have any hesitation in calling the Leader of the Opposition a traitor.”

Mr Patra accused Mr Gandhi of betraying India and claimed he follows OCCRP directives.

“OCCRP is a global media agency and crores of people read what they publish. Open Society Foundation is a big funder… it is George Soros’s foundation. Such agencies work for the interest of the people who fund them and Rahul Gandhi betraying the whole country…” he added.

That charge was picked up and repeated by the BJP’s Nishikant Dubey in the Lok Sabha, triggering vociferous protests from the Congress. Mr Dubey accused the Congress of “conspiring with foreign forces” to derail the government because of their “hatred” for Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

“George Soros routinely conspires to derail economies of other countries. He was the force behind the closure of the Bank of England in 1991. He accrued benefits of over Rs 6 billion from this. Today, he wants to derail the Indian economy,” Mr Dubey claimed.

Mr Dubey, nearly drowned out by shouting Congress MPs and his BJP colleagues thumping their desks in approval, also demanded Mr Gandhi be investigated for meeting with American lawmakers like Ilhan Omar, who are vocal critics of Prime Minister Modi and his administration.

“The Congress must answer… what transpired in meetings with those who have a history of peddling anti-India agenda on Rahul Gandhi’s foreign tours,” he said.

With input from agencies

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To be a Deputy Chief Minister, or not to be? That, it seems, is the question before Eknath Shinde as the clock ticks down to 5.30 pm and Devendra Fadnavis being sworn in as Chief Minister.

Mr Shinde was widely expected to be sworn in as a deputy to Mr Fadnavis this evening; sources told NDTV last evening he had been persuaded to stand down designs on the top post and join an alliance member – almost certainly Ajit Pawar of the NCP – to be one of two Deputy Chief Ministers.

Indeed, Mr Fadnavis himself dropped broad hints to that effect when he met Maharashtra Governor CP Radhakrishnan and formally staked the Mahayuti alliance’s claim to form the next government.

The matter seemed settled after nearly a fortnight of suspense and jabs from the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi, which mocked the BJP-led coalition for having failed to put together an administration.

READ | It’s Official: D Fadnavis Will Be Maharashtra Chief Minister

But now, hours before a grand swearing-in ceremony at Mumbai’s historic Azad Maidan, a possible U-turn may be on the cards. Sources have told NDTV Mr Shinde is re-considering his options, in what is being seen as a potential last-gasp power play to force greater rewards from the BJP.

READ | E Shinde Comes Around, To Take Deputy Chief Minister Post: Sources

Sources said party leaders are frantically trying to persuade their boss to be part of the new government. That apparent attempt at persuasion was underlined by Sena leader Sanjay Shirasat.

“Eknath Shinde will listen to our request and take oath as Deputy Chief Minister… we want him to take the oath. We are all going to convince him and get him ready for the oath-taking,” he said.

#WATCH | Mumbai, Maharashtra: Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Shirsat says, ” Eknath Shinde will listen to our request and he will take oath as Deputy CM, we believe that…he is our leader and we want him to take the oath as Deputy CM…we all are going to Eknath Shinde, we will… pic.twitter.com/kD4MniN32Y

— ANI (@ANI) December 5, 2024

A second Sena leader was more direct; Uday Samant said the Shinde Sena had “made it very clear that he (Eknath Shinde) must become Deputy Chief Minister in this government”. He also declared no Shinde Sena leader would accept a seat in the government if Mr Shinde does not accept the offer.

A third, Deepak Kesarkar, appealed to Mr Shinde by using Mr Fadnavis himself as an example, pointing out he had also stepped down from the Chief Minister’s chair to the Deputy’s in 2022.

READ | How D Fadnavis Accepting No.2 Role Cleared His Way To The Top

Mr Shinde, Sena leaders have declared, will announce his decision shortly.

The dithering by Mr Shinde is being seen by many as an attempt to secure key cabinet berths in the incoming government. Part of the negotiations that saw Mr Fadnavis confirmed as the new Chief Minister saw the BJP keep around 20 cabinet berths and give a dozen to the Shinde Sena.

Just what these are, or will be, is unclear.

But they will certainly be high-profile posts; the Shinde Sena, sources said, has designs on the Home Ministry, currently held by Mr Fadnavis. At least three other big-name portfolios, including Water Resources and Public Works Department, are also expected to be heading to the Shinde Sena.

READ | BJP 22, Sena 12: What Maharashtra Power Share Formula May Look Like

The dithering could also be a way for a Shinde Sena, which seems to feel it has been short-changed by its ally, by to steal some of the spotlight, the attention, from the BJP and Mr Fadnavis.

Sources have said many within the Shinde Sena are unhappy at seeming to play second fiddle to the BJP despite the Mahayuti’s election win coming on the back of the Eknath Shinde government’s policies and performance over the past two-and-a-half years.

Ultimately, however, in electoral politics numbers are everything and the Shinde Sena, quite simply, doesn’t have the leverage.

Mr Shinde became Chief Minister in 2022 after leading over 40 Sena MLAs away from then-party boss Uddhav Thackeray’s side. Mr Shinde and his loyalists allied with the BJP which, then, had only 105 MLAs and no support from the NCP; that came the next year after Ajit Pawar’s rebellion.

That meant it had to accept Mr Shinde’s terms if it wanted power in Maharashtra.

This time around the BJP holds the cards.

It has 132 MLAs and Ajit Pawar’s NCP in its pocket, giving it 173 seats in the 288-seat House. It does not, really, need the Sena of Eknath Shinde to form the government. But a break-up is not a good image, particularly for a party that prides itself on working well with allies. It will also bring back memories of the 2019 split with the then-undivided Sena, which lost the BJP power in Maharashtra.

With input from agencies

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