The MVA chief ministerial candidate will be decided based on which party wins the maximum number of Assembly seats in the opposition alliance, he said | (Photo: PTI)
Nationalist Congress Party (SP) president Sharad Pawar on Wednesday said there was no need for Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) to declare a chief ministerial face ahead of the Maharashtra Assembly elections, and its ally Shiv Sena (UBT) said there was no contest for the post.
The MVA chief ministerial candidate will be decided based on which party wins the maximum number of Assembly seats in the opposition alliance, he said.
The former Union minister’s comments came in the wake of Shiv Sena (UBT) president Uddhav Thackeray’s recent statement in favour of declaring the CM candidate from the opposition bloc ahead of the elections likely to be held in November.
However, on Wednesday, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray, who was in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar in central Maharashtra, maintained that there was no dispute among the MVA allies over the chief minister’s post. Speaking to reporters in Kolhapur, Pawar said that the decision on who will be the chief minister can be taken after the election results are out.
NCP president Sharadchandra Pawar insisted that he wants the MVA to complete the seat-sharing process and begin election campaigning as early as possible. “The MVA leaders should meet for talks on September 7-9,” the Rajya Sabha MP said, adding that he hopes the election process will be completed by the second week of November. The talks between the MVA, which comprises the Shiv Sena (UBT), NCP (SP) and Congress, should also include the Peasants and Workers Party (PWP), CPI and CPM, Pawar opined. “These parties have some niches of influence in the state and helped the MVA in the Lok Sabha elections,” the veteran politician said. Last month, Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray had demanded that the opposition alliance name its CM candidate before the polls and was ready to back any name announced by allies Congress and NCP (SP).
But the Congress disagreed with Uddhav Thackeray, saying there was no need for a CM before the elections. Pawar had then said his party was not interested in the top post and made it clear that the MVA should focus on giving an alternative to the people and defeating the ruling Mahayuti alliance. In Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray, son of Uddhav Thackeray, clarified that there was no dispute among the three MVA constituencies for the chief minister’s post. Asked about Pawar’s statement that the MVA CM will be decided after the elections, he said, “It is okay. There will be internal discussions. No one is fighting for the chief minister’s post. But it is expected that there will be a tug-of-war for seats… Everyone should claim all the seats.” The former state minister stated that toppling the ruling regime of the Shiv Sena, BJP and NCP was the aim of the opposition alliance. Aaditya Thackeray spoke to reporters after arriving at Chikalthana airport ahead of his visit to rain-affected villages in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Jalna, Parbhani, Hingoli and Nanded districts. “It is clear that our fight is not against anyone. It is against the Maharashtra government and we want to topple the present government in the state. It is our main objective,” he said.
(Only the headline and image of this report may have been reworked by Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
First published: September 5, 2024 | 7:36 am IS
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