India, May 2 -- The growing feud between leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Shiv Sena - partners in the ruling Mahayuti coalition - reflects their competing efforts to expand their footprints in the state assembly.

While the antagonism between transport minister Pratap Sarnaik (Sena) and BJP MLA from Mira-Bhayandar Narendra Mehta recently peaked with each throwing jibes at the other on social media, in Thane the simmering tussle between deputy chief minster Eknath Shinde and BJP's state unit chief Ravindra Chavan is familiar. Forest minister Ganesh Naik is known to publicly take on Shinde over a contest for control in Navi Mumbai, while Nitesh and Nilesh - former chief minister Narayan Rane's sons - who belong to BJP and Shi...