Mumbai, April 9: The opposition coalition, Maha Vikas Aghadi, has revealed its seat-sharing arrangement for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls, allocating 21 seats to Shiv Sena (UBT), 17 seats to Congress, and 10 seats to NCP (SP).
Congress has relinquished its claim on the contentious Sangli and Bhiwandi seats, which will now be contested by Shiv Sena (UBT) and NCP (SP) respectively. Emphasizing the goal of defeating the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Shiv Sena (UBT) stated that unity within the alliance is crucial for victory.
The announcement of the poll pact, covering all 48 parliamentary seats in Maharashtra, was made by NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Uddhav Thackeray, and state Congress president Nana Patole after extensive negotiations.
Thackeray, addressing a press conference at Shiv Sena (UBT) office, emphasized the importance of defeating the BJP and dismissed criticisms from Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Patole highlighted the determination of Congress workers to secure victory for MVA candidates and criticized the treatment of party leaders by the BJP.
Under the agreement, Shiv Sena (UBT) will contest in various constituencies including Jalgaon, Parbhani, Nashik, and Mumbai South. Congress will contest in Nandurbar, Dhule, Amravati, and Pune, while NCP (SP) will field candidates in Baramati, Shirur, Satara, and other constituencies.
The Lok Sabha polls in Maharashtra are scheduled to be conducted in five phases from April 19 to May 20.
