Maharashtra Assembly Election: Maha Vikas Aghadi Negotiates Seat Sharing, Focus on Uddhav Thackeray and Allies’ Talks

Maharashtra Assembly Election 2024: Ex-Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray is set to be a CM candidate. The first round saw a 99 per cent finalized deal for Mumbai’s 36 seats, according to Shiv Sena’s Sanjay Raut.

However, further details will be shared after a ‘full agreement’ is reached. The third MVA member, Sharad Pawar’s NCP, is reportedly seeking seven to eight seats, but the reported minimum ask from each party exceeds the available number of seats.

Mumbai is considered the Sena’s stronghold, as in the 2019 Assembly election, the party, unified at the time and allied with the BJP, won 14 seats, with the two parties collectively securing 30 of 36 seats. The Congress secured four seats, and the NCP won one in the city.

The Congress’ performance in the Lok Sabha election has given the national party leverage to push for a greater share of seats. Although the Congress and NCP are hesitant to make a declaration at this stage, the Sena is pressing for a consensus figure.

Uddhav Thackeray, who had his first term cut short by the Sena-NCP rebellion, is expected to be a likely candidate for the top job, but has expressed his willingness to support any candidate announced by the Congress and NCP. The MVA is looking to decide on an alliance leader before the election, a departure from the Congress’ strategy in recent polls.

The Sena and BJP’s fallout after the 2019 Assembly election, due to the failure to agree on a post-poll chief ministerial nominee, is also a factor to consider. Seat-sharing squabbles are not limited to the MVA, as the BJP’s alliance also faces internal disputes.

The BJP fielded five candidates in the 2019 election, all of whom were successful. Eknath Shinde’s Sena and Ajit Pawar’s NCP also named candidates, with all of them winning.

The dates for the upcoming Maharashtra Assembly election are yet to be announced.