Before the assembly elections in Maharashtra, differences in the ruling Mahayuti alliance have started coming out in the open. In such a situation, Union Home Minister Amit Shah tried to resolve this crisis during his two-day visit to Maharashtra. He held a meeting with senior leaders of Shiv Sena, NCP and Maharashtra BJP. Sources say that before leaving for Delhi, Shah has assured Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar of giving good seats at Mumbai airport. He also asked them to work together to strengthen the Mahayuti. Meanwhile, Eknath Shinde’s party Shiv Sena has expressed its desire to contest 107 seats in front of the BJP high command.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah held a meeting with CM and Shiv Sena chief Eknath Shinde, NCP president Ajit Pawar, deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis and Praful Patel at Mumbai airport on Monday before leaving for Delhi. Sources said that Union Minister Shah urged all leaders to be careful on their statements and avoid differences in public events. Amit Shah also asked to work together to strengthen the Mahayuti before the Maharashtra assembly elections. Maharashtra NCP President Sunil Tatkare described the meeting of party leaders with Shah as positive and said that we have been assured that all the constituents of the Mahayuti will get respectable seats.
BJP wants 150, Shinde sent a proposal of 107
BJP’s election managers said that the party will contest more than 150 seats out of the total 288 seats in Maharashtra under the Mahayuti alliance and its target is to win 125 seats. Party leaders say that “the initial assessment is that the party is in a strong position on 50 seats. This means that it will have to double its efforts on the remaining 75 seats.” Amit Shah also gave a message to the members of the party’s core committee to put in all their strength and work for victory.
Regarding the two allies, party leaders said that Shiv Sena is likely to get 75 to 80 seats, while NCP will get 55-60 seats. According to a News18 report, Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena has expressed its desire to contest 107 seats. It has also sent a proposal to the BJP high command. Sources say that the Mahayuti alliance between BJP, Shiv Sena (Shinde faction) and Ajit Pawar’s NCP may contest the elections under the leadership of Chief Minister Eknath Shinde.
Shinde’s focus is on Mumbai and Thane
Sources say that Shinde especially wants maximum seats in Mumbai, Thane and Mumbai Metropolitan Region. These seats are traditionally considered the stronghold of Shiv Sena. The Shinde faction is especially focused on those seats where Uddhav Thackeray’s party candidates are likely to contest.
What is the concern of Mahayuti
The biggest concern of the Mahayuti alliance is that its performance in the recently concluded Lok Sabha elections was not very good. BJP won only 9 out of 28 seats. Shiv Sena won 7 out of 15 and NCP won only 1 out of 3 seats. That is, out of a total of 48 seats, Mahayuti got 17 seats. On the other hand, Maha Vikas Aghadi alliance won 30 seats in the Lok Sabha elections.
If we look at the 2019 assembly elections, the BJP had won 105 out of 164 seats. At present, Shinde-led Shiv Sena has 40 MLAs. While Ajit Pawar’s NCP has 42 MLAs. In 2019, the united Shiv Sena won 56 seats, while the united NCP won 54 seats.
