Mumbai: The Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance in Maharashtra has reached a deal for the State’s 48 Lok Sabha seats — 10 days before the start of the election – media reports said Tuesday morning.
The Shiv Sena faction led by former Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray gets the lion’s share — 21 seats — with the Congress allotted 17 and 10 reserved for Sharad Pawar’s Nationalist Congress Party group.
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Thackeray’s Sena will also contest four of Mumbai’s six seats — North West, South Central, South, and South East seats. The Congress will contest the other two — North and North Central.
The Bhiwandi and Sangli seats — which all three claimed, threatening to derail talks — have been given to Pawar’s NCP and Uddhav Thackeray’s Sena. Congress leader Nana Patole called the issue “resolved” and said, “… our workers will work to make the MVA candidates victorious in both seats.”
“There comes a time when we have to move forward… we have reached this deal with the aim of winning the election. We have done this… now the people will decide,” Thackeray said. Pawar said candidates (for seats not yet announced) will be announced soon.
The MVA’s seat-share deal comes shortly after Prakash Ambedkar’s Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi — which has substantial support among the Dalit communities — withdrew from talks.
The VBA held prolonged talks with the tripartite alliance but an agreement was not forthcoming. Ambedkar wanted five seats for his party but the MVA, reports indicated, would offer only two.
Chandrahar Patil, a wrestler who belongs to Shiv Sena (UBT), will be contesting the Sangli Lok Sabha seat as a Maha Vikas Aghadi candidate. He will take on sitting MP Sanjaykaka Patil of the BJP who has been renominated by the party.
The Congress has also given up the Bhiwandi seat which will be contested by NCP led by Sharad Pawar. The MVA has adopted 21-17-10 formula. Shiv Sena (UBT) will contest 21, Congress 17 and 10 by NCP (S-P).
The Congress and Sena had been at loggerheads after Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray went to Sangli and announced the candidature of Chandrahar Patil. The Congress had immediately opposed the decision, arguing that Sangli had been the party’s traditional bastion and it had two MLAs in the constituency, while the Sena had none. It announced the name of Vishal Patil, the grandson of former Chief Minister Vasantdada Patil.
The Sena, on the other hand, contended that it had parted with Kolhapur and Ramtek Lok Sabha seats and therefore wanted to gain at least the Sangli seat in return for the two.
