Ahead of the assembly elections in Maharashtra, the ruling Mahayuti alliance in the state is brainstorming which party gets to fight what seat. The Mahayuti alliance comprises of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Chief Minister Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena, and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP).
As per the seat-sharing discussions between the Mahayuti allies, the BJP might be getting the largest share of the pie. The saffron party may contest anywhere between 140-150 seats, NDTV reported citing sources.
Shinde-led Shiv Sena may be the second biggest benefactor as the party is likely to fight 80 seats. Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar's NCP might be getting the shorter end of the stick as the regional force may fight around 55 seats and three seats have been set aside for smaller allies, sources added.
Earlier in the day, Ajit Pawar denied reports that he sought the chief minister's position during his meeting with Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
He said that Shah only came to Mumbai for Ganesh darshan and other issues including onion exports, losses suffered by farmers due to heavy rains and the minimum support price were discussed.
Pawar added that he was not in favour of friendly fights with partners of the ruling alliance, the BJP and Shinde Sena. Shah, on the other hand, assured CM Shinde and Ajit Pawar of "respectful" seat distribution among the Mahayuti allies for assembly elections.
Meanwhile, NCP (SCP) chief Jayant Patil made a huge claim on the Mahayuti alliance. Patil said that he suspects the BJP and Shiv Sena could ask the Ajit Pawar-led NCP to stay out of the pre-poll alliance so they can overcome their reduced popularity.
He said that the NCP might be asked to contest elections separately and will again join hands after the assembly elections. The NCP (SCP) chief noted that the BJP and Shiv Sena leaders criticised the NCP and Ajit Pawar also did not make public appearances with them.
Furthermore, Jayant Patil accused the Mahayuti of postponing the assembly elections to get political advantage from the Ladki Bahin Yojana, which assures Rs 1,500 per month to eligible women in the state.
"The financial situation of the state is critical. There is concern whether the salaries of state government employees will be given on time or not. The Mahayuti's priority is merely to hold onto power and not the welfare of the state, so they are thinking only about the next few months," he said. Patil added that the state government has claimed that the scheme is only there for the next few months and will be audited later on.