False roar

The tiger may have aged, but he retains his stripes. Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray chose to give the BJP a pin-prick by supporting NCP leader Sharad Pawar for the prime ministership on the day Uddhav Thackeray backed L K Advani as the NDA’s choice for the top job. Though Thackeray Sr was only trying to settle scores with the BJP for having failed to stand by him when he faced rebellions from his nephew Raj Thackeray and Narayan Rane, the gambit did shake the saffron party. “Sab theek hai, na?” Advani asked Uddhav’s confidant Sanjay Raut twice at the NDA leaders’ meeting at his residence. “Yes, yes,” Raut responded, much to Advani’s relief.