NAGPUR, Dec. 7 -- The customary winter session of the Maharashtra legislature, beginning Monday, is arriving this year under an unusually heavy political cloud. Though it will be among the shortest sessions in the state's history-lasting just a week, from December 8 to 14-it is shaping up to be a high-voltage political showdown. The session will coincide with two key moments: the Mahayuti government completing one year in office under chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, and rising political heat during the ongoing local body elections, which have triggered internal rifts and unexpected alliances across parties. While farmer distress, law and order, and the Mahayuti's one-year performance will dominate the political narrative inside the House, the state government is expected to focus primarily on pushing through official bills and routine legislative business during the week-long session. In the absence of a formally empowered Opposition and with the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) numerically weakened, the treasury benches are confident of a relatively smooth sail through the storm. The MVA, for its part, is preparing a point-by-point attack on what it describes as a year marked by failure, mismanagement, and broken promises. At the top of the MVA's list of charges is the multi-crore Pune land scam, in which deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar's son, Parth Pawar, has been named. The Opposition also intends to corner the government over alleged corruption linked to the ongoing civic elections, recent violent incidents in Beed, the worsening law and order situation, and the contentious plan to fell trees in Nashik's ecologically sensitive Tapovan area ahead of the 2027 Kumbh Mela. The timing could not be worse for the Mahayuti government: the state is reeling from farmer distress triggered by unseasonal rains, lingering crop-insurance irregularities, and the renewed agitation for Maratha reservations. The government's flagship welfare scheme, the Ladki Bahin Yojana is also likely to come under intense scrutiny over alleged irregularities. In this volatile backdrop, the seven-day session is almost certain to see confrontation. The MVA, weakened after its poor performance in the 2024 Assembly elections, does not have the numbers to officially claim the Leader of the Opposition's post in the Assembly. Nevertheless, it has approached Speaker Rahul Narwekar and chief minister Fadnavis on the matter. The Shiv Sena (UBT) is staking its claim in the lower House, while the Congress is seeking the post in the legislative council after Ambadas Danve's tenure ended in the monsoon session. The unusually short session has also revived an old, uncomfortable question: what is the real purpose of holding such an extravagant annual exercise in Nagpur if it cannot meaningfully address policy, reform, or regional grievances? The winter session traces its origins to the historic 1960 Nagpur Pact, when Maharashtra's first chief minister, Yashwantrao Chavan, designated Nagpur as the state's second capital and committed to holding a minimum four-week session there every year to draw attention to the long-neglected Vidarbha region. Over the decades, that solemn commitment has steadily eroded, shrinking into little more than a symbolic ritual. And symbolism does not come cheap. Transporting the state's entire administrative machinery from Mumbai to Nagpur, refurbishing buildings that lie dormant most of the year, deploying massive security arrangements, and arranging accommodation for ministers, MLAs, bureaucrats, and support staff is believed to cost upwards of Rs.500 crore. Exact numbers, however, remain unclear, as they are not routinely disclosed....