Maharashtra News Updates: The announcement of the Maharashtra Assembly election is expected in September, which will reveal the election schedule and the number of phases. Both Mahayuti, the ruling alliance, and the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi have already started preparing for the polls. Maha Vikas Aghadi leaders are exuding confidence, claiming they will win 200 seats. Their confidence has soared after securing 30 seats in Maharashtra in the recent Lok Sabha elections. On the other hand, Mahayuti is gearing up to learn from their losses in the Lok Sabha elections and emerge victorious in the state polls. As the election landscape unfolds, here is a look into the specific challenges the ruling Mahayuti is facing in Maharashtra.
1. CM Face Not Disclosed Yet
The Shiv Sena Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray Party, the Nationalist Sharad Chandra Pawar Party, and the Congress are the three parties that make up Maha Vikas Aghadi. These three parties have now stated their belief that they will win the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly as well, given that they have 30 Lok Sabha seats in Maharashtra. There is talk that Uddhav Thackeray will lead the Maha Vikas Aghadi as chief minister. The Congress has won thirteen Lok Sabha seats. Clearly, this trust was built. Mahayuti and the BJP have not disclosed their faces. The announcement has been made that Eknath Shinde will lead Mahayuti during the election. But after that? As yet, it is unclear. This will probably be more advantageous for Mahavikas Aghadi.
2. Public Sympathy With 2 Veteran Leaders
Both Sharad Pawar and Uddhav Thackeray pose a greater threat to the BJP than the Congress in the state. The fact that the parties of these two veteran leaders are divided is a significant factor in this. Following that, the public sympathized with both leaders. A glimpse of this was witnessed in Maharashtra during the Lok Sabha elections. Ajit Pawar thought he would win Baramati, but he was wrong. Baramati backed Sharad Pawar, and Supriya Sule was elected as an MP once more. Furthering the sympathy on his side was the fact that Uddhav Thackeray kept stating in his speeches that my father, the party, and Dhanushyaban were all stolen. Mahayuti might have to bear the consequences this time around. It's not impossible for it to happen.
3. Ajit Pawar Failure
Both the ruling Shiv Sena and the BJP expressed disapproval at the inclusion of Ajit Pawar, the second deputy chief minister of Maharashtra, in the grand alliance. Two powers are available to the NCP Congress. There was also a match in the Lok Sabha between Sharad and Ajit Pawar. However, it appears that Sharad Pawar is receiving favorable public opinion. When Ajit Pawar spoke about developments, he mentioned how Sharad Pawar adopted a different approach during his period. However, in the Lok Sabha elections, Ajit Pawar's NCP was only able to secure one seat. Even in the Grand Alliance, Ajit Pawar's health is currently not great. It appears that Ajit Pawar had not lived up to the expectations that Mahayuti brought with him. Furthermore, there was a faction within the BJP that thought Eknath Shinde's entry was inevitable. This particular faction, which is still present, was not pleased with Ajit Pawar's entry into Mahayuti and his subsequent consolidation of power.
4. Raj Thackeray: The Mystery Card
During the Gudi Padwa event, MNS President Raj Thackeray declared, "I stand by Narendra Modi to become the Prime Minister of this country." That was a bit of a mystery role. After the Lok Sabha election results, however, Raj Thackeray remained silent. His silence was telling at the time, but nobody realized that. Furthermore, there was no invitation extended to Raj Thackeray, who wholeheartedly endorsed Narendra Modi's swearing-in ceremony. Whether it is to stop all of this or to summon the assembly to the grand alliance, Raj Thackeray put forth the slogan of self-reliance. "We will see later whether we will go with them or not," as Raj Thackeray stated regarding Mahayuti. He further added, "we are going to contest 225 to 250 seats." Mahayuti will therefore have a headache as a result of Raj Thackeray's announcement.
5. 'Maratha Factor' And Manoj Jarange
In addition to bringing up the subject of Maratha reservation, Manoj Jarange has expanded it by bringing it up throughout Maharashtra. He also issued an ultimatum to the government, which is now over. Even though they are at ease right now, they will decide in the next few days whether to run a strong campaign in the elections. He made a request to the Maratha community two days ago to withdraw all 288 candidates in the event that they were not granted reservations. Over the past 1.5 years, the Maratha reservation issue has grown increasingly complicated. In the assembly, as in the Lok Sabha election, the 'Maratha factor' will be felt if the grand coalition government fails to resolve it and prolongs it until the next election.
6. Seat-Sharing Formula And Proper Timing
Mahayuti leaders have been observed stating, both in low tones and in public, that the reason they lost was because several Lok Sabha seats had late nominations for candidates. Out of the 288 seats, how many will the BJP now contest, and how many will the Shiv Sena, under the leadership of Eknath Shinde, contest? In addition, how many seats will Ajit Pawar's NCP contest? It will be very crucial to watch this. There would be 138 seats left if the BJP ran for 150. Even if they are distributed equally, the Shiv Sena and NCP would have 60 seats apiece, with the remaining 18 seats going to their allied parties. In order to win seats, the BJP needs to maintain the support of its allies and the satisfaction of the NCP and Shiv Sena. But this time, like the Lok Sabha election, Mahayuti might suffer if a decision is not made quickly.
7. 'Vote Cutting' And Prakash Ambedkar
During the Lok Sabha elections, Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi leader Prakash Ambedkar made a stand beneficial for the Mahavikas Aghadi. Prakash Ambedkar was also at the forefront of promoting Prime Minister Narendra Modi's pledge to change the constitution. In the Lok Sabha elections, no MP from Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi was elected from Maharashtra. However, whoever they fielded has succeeded in eating up the Mahayuti votes. In the Legislative Assembly, Prakash Ambedkar can win seats if he sticks with the Mahavikas Aghadi and runs his campaigns in the same manner. In places where seats are unavailable, there's a good chance that his candidates will absorb the votes of the Grand Alliance and the BJP.
The BJP needs Mahayuti to help them reach the magical number of 145 after conquering all these obstacles. All the Mahayuti's MLAs will need to overcome these significant challenges or make an effort in that direction if the Mahayuti's Chief Minister is to be reinstalled in Maharashtra. Contrary to what the Grand Alliance believes, this election is not simple. The public is also aware that the schemes of "Ladka Bhau," "Ladki Bahin," and other catchphrases were created in anticipation of the elections.
What plan of action will the three parties in the grand alliance now adopt? How will they succeed in this race against these challenges? It'll be crucial to observe.