Deadlock Continues Over Seat Sharing in Both Maharashtra Alliances as Parties Struggle to End Infighting – News18

The two major alliances in Maharashtra are struggling to finalise their seat-sharing formula despite the first phase of voting being just around the corner.

All the parties in the Mahayuti and MVA have not released their full and final list as talks are still underway in both the alliances. Mahayuti was supposed to announce their seat-sharing formula and list of all candidates last week but the meeting was postponed due to lack of consensus on Satara, Nasik, South Mumbai and a few other seats. As per sources in Mahayuti, the leadership is using the wait-and-watch strategy as they are keeping an eye on the Maha Vikas Aghadi camp.

Though MVA says there is no dispute in the alliance, Congress being miffed with Uddhav Thackeray announcing the Sangli seat without taking the former into confidence revealed the cracks in MVA.

Now, another point of dispute among MVA partners is the Bhiwandi Lok Sabha seat. Till 2014, Bhiwandi was considered the bastion of the Congress but, since then, state minister and BJP leader Kapil Patil has established his dominance. Congress wants to contest again on this seat, given that it is their traditional constituency, but the Sharad Pawar-led NCP is aggressively pitching for Bhiwandi. The local Congress workers have threatened the leadership that they will quit the primary membership of the party if the seat goes to the NCP(SP).

Infighting has also rocked the Mahayuti. In Buldana, Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena MLA Sanjay Gaikwad decided to file his nomination without the consent of the party leadership. This upset Shinde who has asked Gaikwad to withdraw his nomination as the party has officially announced the ticket to Prataprao Jadhav.

There is also a tussle over the South Mumbai seat in Mahayuti between the BJP and Shinde camp. The latter wants a Shiv Sena vs Shiv Sena UBT battle in South Mumbai as since the last two terms, a combined Shiv Sena has won this seat. Raj Thackeray-led MNS is also eyeing the South Mumbai seat. Sources indicate that Thackeray’s meeting with Home Minister Amit Shah and later with Devendra Fadnavis was to put forth this demand as voters unhappy with Sena UBT MP Arvind Sawant will have an option to pick MNS. So far, there has been no further discussion about the inclusion of MNS into ‘Mahayuti’.

On Thursday evening, Maha Vikas Aghadi leaders held a meeting in Mumbai, but sticky issues related to seat-sharing were kept for the next meeting.