Nagpur: National Congress Party (NCP) chief Ajit Pawar on Saturday informed that the first round of discussions on seat sharing between Mahayuti alliance has been completed ahead of the Maharashtra Assembly elections. Ajit Pawar was talking to the media after arriving in Nagpur for the Ladki Bahin Yojana event in the city.
Ajit Pawar also said that the alliance will sit together again for the second time to decide on 288 seats. “We had our first round of discussions on seat sharing. We will sit again for the second time and decide who gets which seat, out of the 288 seats. We will discuss and decide on that.” Ajit Pawar said. “Elective merit will be the criteria for seat sharing,” he added.
Ajit Pawar refused to comment over Shiv Sena leader Tanaji Sawant’s controversial statement over NCP leaders.
“If someone has said something, I don’t want to comment on it. I have decided at the beginning of the Jan Samman Yatra that I will not comment on anyone. If someone criticizes me, it does not matter to me. I believe in working.” Ajit Pawar said.
Maharashtra Health Minister Tanaji Sawant had expressed his dissatisfaction with the alliance. “Even if we sit next to each other in the Cabinet, I feel like vomiting after coming out,” Sawant was quoted as saying.
Earlier, Ajit Pawar visited the site in Malvan where the statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj collapsed on August 26.
Pawar stated, “Everyone is saddened by what has happened. Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj is our deity, and we are all proud of his legacy. The Chief Minister has held meetings regarding this incident. Efforts are being made to rebuild the memorial. Action will be taken against those responsible. No matter where they flee, they will be found. There is no point in debating whether it was the Navy or the PWD.”
Congress expels two MLAs
Meanwhile, Maharashtra Congress President Nana Patole on Friday said the party has expelled its MLAs Zeeshan Siddique and Jitesh Antapurkar, a move coming just ahead of the Assembly polls.
Speaking to reporters in Nagpur, he did not elaborate on reasons for the expulsion of Zeeshan Siddique and Antapurkar, but the action comes more than a month after it came to light that seven Congress MLAs cross-voted in biennial elections to 11 seats of the Legislative Council.
Replying to a query on Zeeshan Siddique and Antapurkar, Patole said there was no point in commenting on the two MLAs as they have been expelled by the party.
Zeeshan Siddique was elected from Bandra (East) in Mumbai, while Antapurkar represented Deglur in Nanded district. Zeeshan Siddique’s father Baba Siddique joined the Ajit Pawar-led NCP ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.