MVA negotiations face hurdle on four Lok Sabha seats; Cong. chief holds talks with Pawar
The Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) in Maharashtra has outlined a seatsharing arrangement for nearly all constituencies, but negotiations continue for four contentious Lok Sabha seats in the State.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge is learnt to have spoken with Nationalist Congress Party (SP) chief Sharad Pawar on Tuesday on the issue. Mr. Pawar, in turn, will communicate with Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Uddhav Thackeray.
Seat sharing
Mr. Kharge also held a meeting with the national alliance committee members K.C. Venugopal, Mukul Wasnik, and Salman Khurshid to reach a resolu
NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar) chief Sharad Pawar.
tion, as they want to complete the seatsharing formula before the INDIA bloc’s public rally in Mumbai on March 17, which marks the beginning of the electoral campaign.
The seats still under consideration are Mumbai SouthCentral, Bhiwandi, Nashik, and Ramtek, leaders engaged in the seatsharing discussions told The Hindu.
Mumbai SouthCentral is one of the contentious seats currently held by Rahul Shewale of the Chief Minister Eknath Shindeled Sena.
It was historically under Shiv Sena from 1989 to 2004 and the party is not ready to give it up, while the Congress views it as a winnable seat. Thane’s Bhiwandi is another seat, currently represented by BJP’s Kapil Patil.
Sources said both the NCP (SP) and the Congress seek this constituency.
However, the NCP leaders are said to have told Congress that it doesn’t have a significant presence.
Nashik is also posing challenges, and Ramtek is the fourth seat with historical competition between the Congress and the undivided Shiv Sena.