Whom should the credit goes to. After weeks of verbal duel between Shiv-Sena Supremo Bal Thakeray and Prime Minister A B Vajpayee, the former retreated " only for this year". The final act of the drama came to an end following an hour-long meeting with the Union Home Minister L K Advani. So the million dollar question arose whom should the credit goes to.

Was it the result of the BJP's threat if the Shiv Sena did not stop its brinkmanship over the Pak Cricket tour to India, it would snap its ties with the Sena in running the Maharastra government? Or, it was the BJP leadership who cajoled the Sena Supremo to do so to keep running their own government at the Centre.

Everybody knew, with the continued sabre-rattlling brinkmanship of Shiv Sena to disrupt the Pak Cricket tour to India the BJP was pushed to a crossroad. Its government at Delhi could not take any action against Shiv-Sena and its "Sainiks", nor could it snap its ties with Shiv Sena in Maharastra, even though public opinion was fastly growing against its non-governance.

But, it was too much for BJP government at the Centre to sustain the fall-out of West Bengal's Left Front government's victory over Sena-BJP government in Mumbai by providing a safe shelter for Sena-hounded BCCI in Calcutta. Back to home, threatened with life if landed in Mumbai, the Indian Team was welcome to Calcutta and received hale and hearty. At home and abroad, people witnessed the difference between two governments - one in Mumbai and the other in Calcutta. The people also realised the difference in the political characteristics of the two governments.

Groaning under this shock, the Union Home Minister L.K. Advani had to fly to Mumbai as an emissary of Prime Minister A B Vajpayee to propitiate Sena-Supremo Bal Thakeray to save the BJP-led government at the Centre from the public wrath.