Maharashtra Election: Ruling Mahayuti, Oppn Alliance MVA Inch Closer To Seat-Sharing Deals Ahead Of Nov 20 Polls
Maharashtra Election 2024: The BJP is expected to contest most seats in the Mahayuti alliance, while the Congress and Shiv Sena (UBT) are reportedly competing for dominance in the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance.
As the Election Commission announced the Maharashtra Assembly elections on Tuesday, the focus has shifted to the seat-sharing arrangements within the two main alliances—Mahayuti and Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA). According to sources, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is set to contest the highest number of seats within the Mahayuti alliance while the Congress and Shiv Sena (UBT) are reportedly in a contest to be the bigger party in the MVA.
Maharashtra Election 2024: Mahayuti's Seat-Sharing Formula
The BJP is expected to field candidates in 145 to 155 seats, while Chief Minister Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena faction could contest 85 to 90 seats. Ajit Pawar’s Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) may field candidates in 50 to 55 seats, sources revealed.
NCP leader Praful Patel informed reporters on Monday, "We have reached a consensus on 225 to 230-235 seats. Once the other seats are finalised, we will let you know in the next two to four days."
Earlier, on Saturday, BJP chief Chandrashekhar Bawankule mentioned that around 90 per cent of the seat-sharing discussions had been completed within the Mahayuti. "The remaining 10 per cent will be completed in the next few days," Bawankule stated. Reports suggest that the BJP may contest between 140-150 seats, while the Shinde-led Shiv Sena is likely to contest around 80 seats, and Ajit Pawar’s NCP is expected to field candidates in about 55 seats.
Maharashtra Election 2024: MVA's Seat-Sharing Formula
The opposition alliance Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) is also finalising its seat-sharing formula. According to sources, the Congress party and Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena (UBT) may contest an equal number of seats. However, the Congress, buoyed by its strong performance in the Lok Sabha elections, is aiming to play a bigger role and seeks to contest around 115 seats. Shiv Sena (UBT), however, is reportedly unwilling to concede the senior position to the Congress.
As per sources, the Congress might contest 100 to 110 seats, Shiv Sena (UBT) could also contest 100 to 110 seats, and Sharad Pawar’s NCP (SP) might field candidates in 80 to 85 seats. These allocations also include adjustments for left parties and other smaller allies.
The seat-sharing discussions within the MVA alliance have progressed, focusing primarily on the Marathwada and Vidarbha regions, The Hindu reported earlier this month. It further cited a senior leader involved in the talk as saying, "We primarily discussed Marathwada and Vidarbha today. Over 120 seats were discussed. There is consensus on them. The strategy is to decide on a seat-to-seat basis". The MVA parties also engaged in talks with smaller parties, including Republican party splinters, left parties, and the Samajwadi Party, which have requested over 40 seats.
Highlighting their long-standing alliances, another senior leader told The Hindu, "Many of them are long associations. We had accommodated them during the Lok Sabha elections as well. We want to take everyone together with us."
Previously, Nana Patole, the Maharashtra Congress president, expressed that progress had been made in resolving differences over seats in Marathwada and Vidarbha, regions where all three MVA parties have staked claims to certain seats. Last week, talks reached a deadlock over these areas, but some consensus was achieved during the latest meeting, as per sources cited by The Hindu.
The Maharashtra Assembly elections will be conducted in a single phase, with voting scheduled for 20 November across all 288 constituencies. The counting of votes will take place on 23 November.
The seat-sharing arrangements come amid changing political dynamics since the last Assembly elections in 2019. In that election, the BJP contested 162 seats and won 105. Undivided Shiv Sena fielded candidates in 124 constituencies, securing 56 seats. However, since then, the Shiv Sena has split into two factions.
The NCP contested 121 seats in the 2019 elections, winning 54. It has also seen a division into two factions. During the 2019 elections, the NCP contested in alliance with the Congress, which fielded candidates in 147 seats and won 44. Both MVA and Mahayuti alliances are now expected to soon formalise their respective seat-sharing arrangements ahead of the upcoming polls.
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