The two came together and tasted success in the Lok Sabha by-elections in Gorakhpur, Phulpur and Kairana last year. The SP won two seats while RLD secured Kairana.In the 2014 Lok Sabha battle, the BJP swept winning 71 seats on its own and two more went to an ally, its best performance ever. The BJP had won 22 seats, LJP six and RLSP three in 2014 when the JD-U fought separately and could get only two seats. Political observers feel that if the BJP and Shiv Sena fight it alone, right-wing votes would be split hurting both parties.In the Assembly elections that were held in October 2014 following the Lok Sabha polls, the BJP and the Shiv Sena contested separately. By winning 122 seats in the 288-member Assembly, almost twice the seats the Sena got, the BJP showed that it was no longer the junior partner in the alliance.

Source: Economic Times February 17, 2019 08:03 UTC