Maharashtra: Uddhav Thackeray Declares MVA Will Jointly Contest Upcoming Assembly Elections For 288 Seats

Mumbai: In a significant move, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Uddhav Thackeray announced on Saturday that the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) will jointly contest the upcoming elections to the 288 assembly seats. He declared this in the presence of Congress leaders Prithviraj Chavan, Balasaheb Thorat and Sharad Pawar, chief of the Nationalist Congress Party (SP) at a presser.

His statement comes in the background of Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) Nana Patole said his party will go it alone in the assembly polls. Patole's unilateral statement has come in for strong criticism with his own party. Sources said the party's stand was that since the MVA experiment had succeeded in the just-concluded Lok Sabha elections, the alliance should be continued for the assembly polls.

A senior leader told the FPJ: "Because of the MVA, anti-BJP votes could be consolidated in the parliamentary elections. There is no reason when a proven formula should not be applied for the assembly polls also. Patole is speaking for himself."

It is learnt that certain Congress leaders are going to complain to the party high command against Patole's statement. Even before the LS polls there was a demand that he should be removed, but the party central leadership decided to wait till the polls were over. Incidentally, Patole, who is a defector from the BJP, was conspicuous by his absence at the press meet on Saturday.

The MVA was formed following a rift between the BJP and the united Shiv Sena over the issue of chief ministership after the 2019 assembly polls. While Uddhav insisted that he has been promised the CM's post, the BJP denied having made any such commitment. Uddhav pulled out of the saffron alliance and teamed up with Sharad Pawar and others to form the MVA government, which was pulled down by the BJP led by Devendra Fadnavis.

Over the past few years, Uddhav had worked out a good personal equation with Sharad Pawar and Congress leaders. This camaraderie has seeped down to the cadres of all the party because of which the MVA could put up a good show in the parliamentary elections. Pawar (83) is determined to bring back the MVA government and has started his poll preparations.

He has cut down his nephew and deputy CM Ajit Pawar to size in the recent polls, by getting even the latter's wife Sunetra defeated in the prestigious Baramati seat.

As for Uddhav, he is keen on not only getting the CM's throne back, but also politically promoting his MLA son, Aaditya, who has politically grown rather well. In an emotional statement, he said, "They have taken everything from me; my MLAs, by party's name and symbol."

He is now in a gung-ho mood since the MVA has proved that the BJP is not invincible. The good performance of the MVA is one of the key reasons why the INDIA alliance surprisingly did well in the LS polls.