Not all is well within the ruling Mahayuti alliance in Maharashtra. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has a message for Chief Minister Eknath Shinde as seat-sharing talks gain momentum in the poll-bound state.
His comments came a day after the Election Commission of India announced the schedule for Maharashtra assembly polls. Voting is scheduled to take place on November 20 and the counting of votes on November 23.
Maharashtra BJP president Chandrashekhar Bawankule on Wednesday said that Shinde should be open-minded and willing to make "sacrifices" like the BJP has done to keep the alliance intact.
"Chief Minister Eknath Shinde must remain open-minded and be willing to make sacrifices. We, too, have made sacrifices to uphold the alliance. It is evident that the BJP aims to contest the seats we previously held," Bawankule told ABP Majha news channel.
He added that as the dominant party in Mahayuti, it is only natural that the BJP seeks more seats to contest. When asked if Union Home Minister Amit Shah said the BJP 'sacrificed' the CM's post while forming the alliance with the Shinde-led Shiv Sena, he said that he does not know what Shah told Shinde.
Bawankule added that the BJP has urged Shinde that it should have a bigger share for contesting seats as the larger party. He added that it is impossible to measure who made greater 'sacrifices'.
"As the chief minister, he could have expected more seats to contest in the assembly polls. However, it is not feasible to enter the elections with tension within the alliance. Our stance is that we should be able to contest the seats we have previously won," Bawankule explained.
The state BJP chief also said that it does not make sense to contest more seats just for the sake of numbers. After urging Shinde to be a bit more open-minded, Chandrashekhar Bawankule said that the BJP may consider swapping some seats with the Shinde Sena.
"Additionally, there are strong candidates from both BJP and NCP, as the NCP contested against us in the 2019 assembly polls. We need more time to take a final decision in this matter."