Mumbai:

Resort politics has made a comeback in Maharashtra, as has the possibility of cross-voting and horsetrading, as the state gears up to hold elections for 11 Legislative Council seats on Friday. Riding high after its unexpectedly good performance in the Lok Sabha polls, in which it won 30 of the state’s 48 seats, the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi has fielded three candidates, one more than it has the numbers to elect, necessitating the election.

The Maharashtra Assembly, which has 288 seats, currently has 274 members, meaning that every MLC candidate needs 23 first-preference votes to get elected. The ruling Mahayuti – part of the larger NDA alliance – which consists of the BJP, the Eknath Shinde faction of the Shiv Sena and the Ajit Pawar wing of the NCP, has fielded nine candidates and has 201 MLAs, including Independents and smaller parties, backing it. 

The Maha Vikas Aghadi, which is under the INDIA umbrella, has the Congress, Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) and the Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar) as its key constituents and has put up three candidates despite having the support of only 67 MLAs. Six MLAs, including an independent, are neutral and may end up playing a key role in the elections because 12 candidates are now vying for 11 Lok Sabha seats. 

What makes the exercise interesting, apart from the numbers game, is its timing – just after the Lok Sabha elections and months ahead of the Assembly polls in the state – which has led to it being dubbed a semi-final. This is also only the second time that elections will be held in Maharashtra’s unique political environment, where the split of two regional parties has led to two Shiv Senas and two NCPs – under very similar but different names – being pitted against each other. 

The Lok Sabha polls were the first round and parties from both sides are now pulling out all stops to ensure that they come out tops in the second. After Ajit Pawar’s NCP won just one Lok Sabha seat, there has been a strong buzz that MLAs from his party are looking to jump ship and return to the faction of the party led by Sharad Pawar. Their support is what may have given the opposition the confidence to field a third candidate.

Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray, who triggered the need for the election by fielding his close aide, Milind Narvekar, had said, “We would not be doing it (fielding a third candidate) if we had not been confident of winning.”

How The Numbers Stack Up – Mahayuti

The BJP, which has 103 MLAs, has fielded five candidates – Pankaja Munde, Yogesh Tilekar, Parinay Phuke, Amit Gorkhe and Sadabhau Khot – which means that it is 12 MLAs short of the number it needs to get them elected.

The Chief Minister Eknath Shinde-led faction of the Shiv Sena has 37 members in the Assembly and has put up two candidates – Krupal Tumane and Bhawana Gawli. It is nine MLAs short.

The faction of the NCP led by Ajit Pawar has 39 MLAs and has two candidates in the fray,  Rajesh Vitekar and Shivajirao Garje, falling seven short of the 46 votes needed to get them elected. 

The ruling coalition is, however, banking on nine MLAs from smaller parties and 13 Independents to see it through. 

How The Numbers Stack Up – Maha Vikas Aghadi

The Congress, with 37 MLAs and one candidate, Pradyna Satav, is the only party with 14 surplus votes. Sharad Pawar’s NCP, with its 13 MLAs, is supporting the Peasants and Workers Party (PWP’s) Jayant Patil. 

Former chief minister Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena has put up Mr Narve as a candidate despite having just 15 MLAs, eight short of the figure it needs. 

The Congress votes may make up for the shortfall faced by Mr Patil and Mr Narve but the votes of the AIMIM’s two MLAs, the SP’s two, the CPI(M)’s lone MLA and one Independent – all of whom are seen to be neutral – will be key. The Congress has claimed the coalition has the support of at least some of these MLAs

MLAs In Hotels

Leader of Opposition in the Assembly, Vijay Wadettiwar of the Congress, organised a dinner meeting for his party MLAs at a hotel in Mumbai on Thursday night. The Congress has issued a whip to its MLAs asking them to vote for candidates of the Maha Vikas Aghadi. Exact instructions, given the surplus votes, will be issued just before voting begins, reported news agency PTI. 

Uddhav Thackeray held a dinner interaction with his MLAs at a five-star hotel in central Mumbai on Wednesday night. All 11 MLAs who attended the meeting stayed back at the hotel, where they were joined by the four remaining legislators on Thursday, said a party leader. 

Ajit Pawar’s NCP has moved its MLAs to a five-star hotel near the airport in suburban Mumbai while MLAs from Shiv Sena gathered in Vidhan Bhavan complex on Wednesday morning for a meeting and then moved to a five-star hotel in Bandra. 

BJP MLAs are also at a luxury hotel, but the the NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar) has not made any such move. 

Jayant Patil, the Maharashtra president of the NCP, said, “We have full faith in our MLAs and don’t feel the need to keep them in five-star hotels.” 

Voting will take place from 9 am to 4 pm and counting of votes will begin an hour later. 

(With inputs from PTI)

New Delhi:

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday described the BJP’s alliance with the Shiv Sena in Maharashtra as a time-tested friendship, bound by common ideals and a shared vision for India’s development.

PM Modi made these remarks when members of Parliament from the Shiv Sena and Ajit Pawar-led NCP called on him.

The newly elected MPs from Maharashtra congratulated Prime Minister Modi on his third consecutive term in office and extended best wishes for his future endeavours.

“Had a great meeting with Shiv Sena MPs. Ours is not a political alliance – it is a time-tested friendship, bound together by common ideals and a shared vision for India’s development,” the prime minister said in a post on X.

Had a great meeting with Shiv Sena MPs. Ours is not a political alliance- it is a time-tested friendship, bound together by common ideals and a shared vision for India’s development. It is commendable how Shri @mieknathshinde Ji is working tirelessly for Maharashtra’s progress… pic.twitter.com/XvBmAesWyW

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) July 1, 2024

PM Modi said it was commendable how Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde was working tirelessly for Maharashtra’s progress and to fulfil the great Balasaheb Thackeray’s ideals.

Assembly elections are due in Maharashtra in September-October and the BJP-Shiv Sena-NCP have announced to contest the polls as a coalition.

Shiv Sena leader Shrikant Shinde said that during the meeting with the PM, development works in Maharashtra were discussed.

The delegation presented the prime minister with a statue of Vitthal Rakhumai.

NCP Lok Sabha member Sunil Tatkare was also present during the meeting.

Shiv Sena parliamentarians Shrikant Shinde, Shrirang Appa Barne, Dhairyasheel Mane, Naresh Mhaske, Ravindra Waikar, Sandipanrao Bhumare, Union Minister Prataprao Jadhav, and Rajya Sabha member Milind Deora were present during the meeting. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Wednesday took a swipe at Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray for his statement that the monsoon session beginning June 27 will be the farewell session of the MahaYuti government.

“Shouldn’t he (Uddhav Thackeray) be in the House to give a farewell? Or will he say goodbye from a Facebook Live? The people will decide whether to bid a farewell,” Shinde said, asserting that those sitting in the government are connected to the people and have done a slew of works for their betterment.

The obvious reference was Uddhav Thackeray’s regular use of Facebook Live during the Maha Vikas Aghadi government’s tenure, instead of coming to the Mantralaya.

Shinde, who chaired the state Cabinet meeting on Wednesday, also criticised the opposition for its move to boycott the customary tea meeting convened by him on the eve of the monsoon session.

“This is the last session of the present state Assembly. So we thought that the opposition would come and discuss a range of issues during the tea meeting. However, they gave a letter mentioning the same issues, which the government will reply to in the House. The opposition is confused,” claimed Shinde.

“The opposition may have got momentary happiness after the Lok Sabha elections, but despite all the attacks, Narendra Modi became the Prime Minister for the third time,” the Chief Minister said, as he reiterated that the opposition spread a fake narrative that changes will be made in the Constitution and reservation policies.

‘’Despite spreading such fake narratives, Congress got only 99 seats and the party will need another 25 years to win 240 seats,” he said.

“The Shiv Sena and the Uddhav Thackeray camp were pitted against each other in 13 seats, of which we won seven seats. Of the total 19 per cent votes, bow & arrow (Sena symbol) got 14.50 per cent. So what did the Thackeray cam get,” Shinde asked.

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

Mumbai:

The Sena versus Sena battle heated up on the occasion of the Shiv Sena foundation day as Uddhav Thackeray and Eknath Shinde held parallel programmes in two parts of Mumbai. And from Sion’s Shanmukhanand Hall, Uddhav Thackeray, powered by the people’s support, issued an open challenge to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

“Modi-ji I invite you to start campaign for assembly election in Maharashtra… it will be you versus me,” he said, pointing to the election due by year-end.

“My message to the BJP — try winning an election without using my original symbol. I am proud that we did not use anyone else’s picture. We will never use either, especially of PM Modi. I challenge PM Modi to start preparations today – keeping this fake Shiv Sena away,” he added.

Mr Thackeray also rubbished speculation about the two Sena factions joining hands and remaining in the NDA fold. He would never go with those who tried to “finish off” his party, Mr Thackeray said.

Though the rebel faction led by Eknath Shinde was awarded the name and election symbol of the undivided Shiv Sena by the Election Commission, the voters had decisively settled the legacy issue. And they did not agree with the poll body.

The Uddhav Thackeray faction of Shiv Sena won nine seats and the Shinde faction seven.

The other party in the same boat,  the Sharad Pawar faction of the Nationalist Congress Party, won eight seats. The faction led by his nephew Ajit Pawar — which also got the name and party symbol from the Election Commission — only one.

Ally Congress won 13 seats.

The people’s disapproval of the political upheaval in the state extended to the BJP, which, Mr Shinde once let slip, had engineered the Sena split. The party’s score was cut down to nine seats, from 23 in 2019 .

But Chief Minister Eknath Shinde remained determined to push the point he based his rebellion on — that Mr Thackeray had strayed from the ideology set down by Sena founder and his father Balasaheb Thackeray.

“Where has your Hindutva gone? You have no right to seek votes in Balasaheb Thackeray’s name,” he said at a massive rally in Worli’s NSCI dome.  “Even a small kid will tell you that the Shiv Sena UBT won because of the Congress’ vote bank. Those who left Bal Thackeray’s thoughts for position, lost in the election. Bal Thackeray always talked against the Congress,” he added.

But Mr Thackeray had already covered the point.

“We got votes of all patriots, people of all religions. They said we left Hindutva, because we went with the Congress. I did not leave Hindutva. If everyone voted for us to save the country and the constitution, then people are with us. It shows the BJP is the one that left Hindutva,” Mr Thackeray said.

Mumbai:

In Maharashtra’s Baramati, a historic showdown awaits as the splintered National Congress Party (NCP) gears up for a unique ‘Pawar vs Pawar’ contest in Supriya Sule, daughter of the party’s patriarch Sharad Pawar, going up against Sunetra Pawar, wife of Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar.

Baramati, in Pune district, has evolved over the years from facing devastating famines into a thriving hub of agriculture, industry, and commerce. Decades of Pawar family dominance have shaped the political narrative of this region. The Pawar family’s influence has been integral to this transformation, with Sharad Pawar’s political career tracing back to the 1960s when he first won in this constituency.

Schism In The Family

The emergence of two factions within the NCP, led by Sharad Pawar and his nephew Ajit Pawar, has set the stage for a dramatic electoral showdown. The NCP’s founding faction has nominated Supriya Sule, 54, while Sunetra Pawar, 60 and Ms Sule’s sister-in-law, has entered the fray as the candidate representing the rival faction.

On July 2 last year, Ajit Pawar, accompanied by eight NCP MLAs, aligned with the Eknath Shinde administration, prompting a fracture within the NCP party ranks. The division within the NCP has left voters and party workers with a choice between two Pawars.

“It will be a very tough choice for voters and party workers to choose between two Pawars. It is a contest they would never have imagined before July 2 last year,” said Madan Devkate, a local leader, as quoted by news agency PTI.

Since the 1960s, the Baramati Lok Sabha constituency, encompassing Baramati, Indapur, Daund, Purandar, Bhor, and Khadakwasla assembly seats, has served as Sharad Pawar’s stronghold.

Ajit Pawar has represented Baramati as an MLA since 1991, and had registered a resounding victory in 2019 by securing an astonishing 83 per cent of the vote share.

Supriya vs Sunetra

The Baramati Lok Sabha constituency consists of six assembly segments: Baramati town, Indapur, Daund, Purandar, Bhor, and Khadakwasla.

Within these segments, the Congress holds sway over Bhor and Purandar, while Baramati and Indapur have historically favoured the NCP (prior to its division). The BJP holds influence in Daund and Khadakwasala.

In the 2019 elections, Supriya Sule clinched her third consecutive win in the Baramati constituency under the NCP banner.

NCP (SP) – the Sharad Pawar faction, a member of the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), along with Shiv Sena (UBT) and Congress, will vie for 10 seats in Maharashtra, a state with 48 Lok Sabha seats. Baramati’s polls are scheduled for the third phase on May 7.

For Sule, aged 54, this marks her debut in a Lok Sabha election where the NCP’s support base will be divided between followers of her father and her cousin. While Sule relies on the allegiance of the Pawar Clan’s supporters and her track record as a Lok Sabha representative, Ajit Pawar can garner additional backing from Shiv Sena cadres under Chief Minister Eknath Shinde’s leadership, as well as the BJP.

In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, BJP candidate Kanchan Kul, wife of Daund MLA Rahul Kul, suffered defeat to Ms Sule by a margin of over 1.55 lakh votes.

Ms Sule’s victory margin in Baramati during her debut Lok Sabha contest in 2009 was 3,36,831 against BJP nominee Kanta Nalawade. This margin decreased to 69,719 in 2014 when Rashtriya Samaj Paksha leader Mahadev Jankar contested against her. In 2019, Ms Sule’s vote tally surged to 6,86,714 with a vote share of 52.63%, securing victory by over 1.55 lakh votes.

Sunetra Pawar is the second member of Ajit Pawar’s family to contest Lok Sabha elections. In 2019, Ajit’s son Parth contested from the Maval seat in Pune district but was defeated by Shiv Sena’s Shrirang Barne.

Sunetra Pawar hails from a politically active family in Marathwada. She is the sister of Padamsinh Patil, a former minister who initially belonged to the Congress but later joined Sharad Pawar’s NCP in 1999.

New Delhi:

Congress leader and former Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Nirupam today urged the party to consider pulling the plug on their alliance with Shiv Sena (UBT). Mr Nirupam’s remarks come hours after the Uddhav Thackeray-led party snubbed Congress and independently released its list of 16 candidates for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.

“The way Shiv Sena UBT has taken 5 seats of Mumbai. It seems that there is a plan to bury Congress in Mumbai. It seems that Shiv Sena wants to force Congress to kneel,” the senior Congress leader told reporters.

“I appeal to the Congress leadership to intervene otherwise break the alliance with Shiv Sena. If Shiv Sena thinks it can fight alone then it is making a big mistake,” Mr Nirupam added.

#ElectionsWithNDTV | “If Congress wants to save the party, it should break alliance with Shiv Sena”: Congress leader Sanjay Nirupam on Uddhav Thackeray-Sena’s first list of candidates for #LokSabhaElection2024pic.twitter.com/AXLAgEtgBk

— NDTV (@ndtv) March 27, 2024

Maharashtra, which has 48 Lok Sabha seats, the second highest after Uttar Pradesh (80), will vote in five phases starting from April 19. Results will be announced on June 4.

The three parties which are part of the opposition alliance in Maharashtra – Congress, Shiv Sena (UBT), and NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar) – have been unable to finalise a seat-sharing plan despite a flurry of meetings before polling in the state begins.

Team Thackeray finally took a call and announced its candidates for 16 seats in the state. The party is yet to announce any candidate for Mumbai South-Central, a seat which the Shiv Sena (UBT) as well as Congress are keen to contest.

Sanjay Nirupam also hit out at Sena’s choice of candidate, which includes Amol Kirtikar, who was today served a notice by the Enforcement Directorate for an alleged multi-crore ‘khichdi’ scam during the Covid pandemic.

“Shiv Sena has forced an accused of the Khichdi scam as a candidate. I will not work for a Khichdi thief,” he said.

He also took at his party saying that Shiv Sena (UBT) announcing a list is a failure of Congress’s top leadership.

“I will wait for a week for the Congress leadership to take a decision after which I am open to all the options,” Mr Nirupam said.

Recently, Mr Nirupam also made remarks on Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s arrest which were not in line with the party’s official. While the Congress condemned the arrest and attacked the BJP over the matter, Sanjay Nirupam called for Kejriwal’s resignation after his arrest.

Mr Nirupam reportedly wants to contest the upcoming Lok Sabha elections from the Mumbai North West seat and his recent remarks against the Congress have sparked rumours that he could switch to the ruling BJP alliance, which is yet to announce a candidate for the seat.

Mumbai:

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis today accused  Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Uddhav Thackeray of failing to deliver on the “many chances” given to him by the people of Mumbai during his tenure as the chief minister of the state.

In an exclusive interview with NDTV’s Editor-in-Chief Sanjay Pugalia, Mr Fadnavis claimed that the Eknath Shinde government is forced to fix things in Mumbai that should have been fixed years ago.

“Uddhav Thackeray was given many chances by the people of Mumbai but he did not do anything about it. There is not one iconic thing done or built by him in the city,” Mr Fadnavis told NDTV.

In June 2022, Mr Thackeray resigned as Maharashtra Chief Minister following a mutiny within the Shiv Sena ranks. A split followed and a floor test in the Maharashtra Assembly put Sena leader Eknath Shinde in the chief minister’s chair and Mr Fadnavis was appointed as his deputy. The Shinde faction of the Sena joined hands with the BJP and is currently the ruling party in the state.

Mr Fadnavis slammed Mr Thackeray for his alleged “anti-modi stance and ruled out any possibility of an alliance with his party ahead of the Lok Sabha elections. 

“There is no scope of any such attempts (potential alliance with Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena). You can take note of this. If he is making an attempt, I don’t know. From our end, there is no scope and no reason to do so. The roles he has taken, the anti-Modi role… I am sad that, for vote-bank politics, he is now indulging in pseudo-secular, appeasement politics,” he said in Hindi. 

“He has opposed the Citizenship Amendment Act. I am finding it difficult to understand Bal Thackeray’s son could do so. So I think the groups are now divided,” he added.

On a potential pact with Mr Thackeray’s cousin Raj Thackeray and his Maharashtra Navnirman Sena, Mr Fadnavis said, “We have not begun any alliance talks with Raj Thackeray. We believe in regional identity. Raj Thackeray talks about Marathis while also talking about Hindutva. I won’t say that there is no possibility of any alliance. But, we are three partners in this alliance, so it is difficult to add someone new.”

Mumbai’s Sewage Problem

Praising his government’s work in India’s financial capital, Mr Fadnavis highlighted the sewage water problem in the city.

“The work that is being done in Mumbai today, should have been done 20 years ago,” Mr Fadnavis continued. “There’s so much sewage water in Mumbai. The water goes to the oceans through sceptic tanks built during the British Raj. That’s why some of our beaches stink.”

Last month, the Maharashtra cabinet approved a proposal to extend its Urban Renewal Mission to construct railway overbridges, national highways and sewage treatment plants.

“As soon as we replaced the Uddhav government, we got tenders and we can assure that in the next three years, not a single drop of dirty water will enter our oceans. Mumbai’s beaches will resemble that of foreign countries,” Mr Fadnavis added.

“Uddhav Thackeray said we do not need bullet trains,” Mr Fadnavis said, alluding to the former chief minister’s order to review the Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train project in 2019. “When we came into power, we worked like a bullet. In the next 2.5 years, you will travel by bullet trains in Maharashtra.”

On Contesting Lok Sabha Elections

With the Lok Sabha elections just weeks ahead, when asked whether he would be contesting the polls, Mr Fadnavis said, “We have announced 20 seats so far in Maharashtra. All the seats from where people thought I would be contesting have been announced. So, there should not be any discussion on this (on him contesting).”

The BJP has announced candidates for 20 out of 48 Lok Sabha constituencies in Maharashtra. The party is in alliance in the state with Mr Shinde-led Shiv Sena and Ajit Pawar-led NCP.

Seamstress Tove Lycke works on NATO flags, at the flag manufacturer Flagghuset, in Akersberga, outside Stockholm, Sweden, March 7, 2024.
| Photo Credit: REUTERS

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Every citizen has a right to criticise abrogation of Article 370: SC

The Supreme Court on March 7 quashed an FIR accusing a college professor in Maharashtra of spreading enmity and disharmony by terming the abrogation of Article 370 a “black day” and wishing “happy independence” to the people of Pakistan in a WhatsApp group of faculty and parents.

New Delhi:

The Supreme Court on Thursday questioned the Maharashtra Speaker’s ruling on the Sena vs Sena dispute – in which the faction led by Eknath Shinde was declared the “real Sena” based on its “discernible legislative majority” – and asked if the conclusion was contrary to its instructions.

A bench led by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud made the oral observation as it heard pleas from the Uddhav Thackeray-led faction (or what was the united Shiv Sena) challenging Speaker Rahul Narwekar’s decision to not disqualify the MLAs – including Mr Shinde – who had switched to the BJP.

The court ordered the Speaker’s office to submit all original records pertaining to disqualification pleas filed by Mr Thackeray’s camp, and asked Mr Shinde’s camp to file a reply by April 1.

The summoning of records was in response to forgery allegations by the Shinde faction.

The next hearing will be in the second week of the same month, the court said, adding, it will also hear then objections by the Shinde side – that this matter is worthy of being heard by the top court.

The court also said it was keeping open the issue of maintainability of the petition.

READ | Thackeray Approaches Court Over Speaker’s “Real Shiv Sena” Decision

On January 10, Rahul Narwekar ruled in favour of the Shinde faction, calling it the “real Shiv Sena” and holding, therefore, that disqualification of its MLAs could not be sought by the Thackeray faction.

READ | Eknath Shinde Faction Is “Real Sena”, Says Speaker

He said he was relying on the legislative strength of the Shinde camp; his final ruling noted it had a strength of 37 of 55 seats (won by the then united Sena in the 2019 Assembly election).

However, in May last year, the Supreme Court had said the Speaker should not base his decision on “a blind appreciation of which group possess a majority in the Legislative Assembly”. The Constitution Bench of the court said a decision on the “real Sena” was more than numbers.

An incensed Mr Thackeray had called Mr Narwekar’s decision an “insult to the Supreme Court and (a) murder of democracy”. The former Chief Minister said the Speaker made a “thief” – a jab at to Eknath Shinde – “master of the House”, and had exceeded the brief given to him by the court.

READ | “Why Were We Not Disqualified,” Thackeray Questions Speaker

“The court had given a framework but he distorted it into something else… he thinks he is above the Supreme Court. He should have made laws against party-hopping stricter but was busy clearing a path for himself,” he said, pointing out also Mr Narwekar had “changed parties many times”.

After splitting in June 2022, the factions served a clutch of disqualification notices against each other. The Thackeray faction sought the removal of as many as 40 Shinde camp MLAs, which, in turn, wanted 14 of its rivals disqualified. The Speaker, though, had dismissed all these petitions.

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Mumbai:

Finalising seat-sharing in Maharashtra, which sends the second-highest number of MPs to the Lok Sabha, has proven to be tricky for the National Democratic Alliance, with all three key partners – the BJP, Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena and Ajit Pawar’s NCP – pushing for a higher number of seats than the others are willing to concede. With BJP’s chief troubleshooter and Union Home Minister Amit Shah holding a late-night meeting on Tuesday with leaders of the other parties, sources said a breakthrough is expected soon.

Party sources said the meeting started around 10.15 pm and Mr Shah held a discussion with Deputy Chief Minister Pawar in the presence of BJP leader and Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis for the first 30 minutes, after which the two leaders left. The next 50 minutes saw talks between the Home Minister and Chief Minister Shinde. 

Of the 48 Lok Sabha seats in the state, the BJP wants 30 to be able to achieve its twin targets of winning 370 seats nationally and taking the NDA to the 400 mark. Sources said the party is willing to leave 12 seats from the Shiv Sena and six for the NCP, a prospect the other partners of the Mahayuti – as the alliance is known in Maharashtra –  are not happy with. 

Pointing out that the Sena symbol and name are with him, Chief Minister Shinde, sources said, has been pushing to be allocated 23 seats, the same number that the undivided Shiv Sena had contested in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls – before the split in 2022. Failing that, Mr Shinde and his party are reportedly ready to settle for 18 seats, which the Shiv Sena had won in the last Lok Sabha elections.

The BJP’s division of constituencies with the then Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena had caused heartburn on both sides even in 2019. The national party had contested 25 seats and won 23 while the Sena had contested 23 and won 18. The BJP camp, sources said, believes it is entitled to a larger share than last time given PM Narendra Modi’s popularity and the fact that it is the single-largest party in the Maharashtra Assembly. 

Complicating matters, however, is the entry of Ajit Pawar’s NCP, which joined the government last year and is pushing for 10 Lok Sabha seats. The then Sharad Pawar-led united NCP had only won four in 2019.

Contentious Seats

Sources said while a consensus is emerging on most other seats, 10 are proving to be a bone of contention. These are Kalyan, South Mumbai, Ratnagiri-Sindhudurg, Shirur, Amravati, Sambhajinagar Nagar, Hingoli, Nashik, Ramtek and Maval

In Kalyan, Chief Minister Shinde’s son, Shrikant Shinde is the sitting MP, but the local unit of BJP wants to contest from the constituency. The BJP claims Kalyan is a traditional seat of the party which it had given to Shiv Sena in 2019 under pressure from Uddhav Thackeray. Union Minister Anurag Thakur had also conducted a review of the constituency and apprised the central leadership.

Arvind Sawant of the Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) is the sitting MP from the South Mumbai constituency and the Shinde faction is keen to contest on it because it is traditionally a Sena seat. Assembly Speaker Rahul Narvekar from the BJP has, however, also shown interest.

In Pune district’s Maval, Shrirang Barne from the Shinde Sena is the sitting MP.  But Ajit Pawar is keen on this seat as his son, Parth Pawar, had lost to Mr Barne in 2019.

Ratnagiri-Sindhadurg in the Konkan region is a Shiv Sena seat but Narayan Rane claimed it for the BJP last week in a post on X. Strongly opposing this, Ramdas Kadam of the Shinde Sena had asked whether the BJP wanted to eliminate every party and contest the Lok Sabha election alone. 

Shirur in Pune district has proven to be another point of friction. Amol Kolhe from the NCP (Sharadchanrd Pawar) is the sitting MP and the seat is now being claimed by the Ajit Pawar faction. The intent to beat Mr Kolhe has been announced by Mr Pawar himself, but former MP Shivaji Adhalrao Patil from Mr Shinde’s Shiv Sena is also keen on throwing his hat in the ring. 

Navneet Rana is the independent MP from Vidarbha’s Amravati and the BJP has offered the constituency to her to contest on its ticket. The Shinde Sena’s Anandrao Adsul, a former MP, has also claimed the seat. 

Sambhaji Nagar in Aurangabad is the lone seat won by the AIMIM in Maharashtra and Imtiaz Jaleel is the sitting MP. Though the constituency has been traditionally fought by the Shiv Sena, which plans to field Minister Sandeepan Bhumre, the BJP wants it for Union Minister of State for Finance, Bhagwat Karad.

A seat which is being eyed by all three members of the Mahayuti is Nashik. Hemant Godse from the Shinde faction of the Shiv Sena is the sitting MP, but the NCP is keen on fielding someone from Minister Chhagan Bhujbal’s family and the BJP has also staked claim. 

In Aurangabad’s Hingoli, Sena’s Hemant Patil is the sitting MP and had offered to resign during the Maratha reservation protest. The BJP is also, however, interested in fielding its candidate.

Krupal Tumane of the Sena is the sitting MP from Ramtek in Nagpur seat but the local BJP cadre want the constituency for the party. They are, however, willing to settle for Mr Tumane fighting on a BJP ticket, sources said.