Rift in MVA Alliance? Unhappy with Seat Sharing, Akhilesh Yadav’s SP to Contest 20 Seats in Maharashtra

The state president of SP, Abu Azmi, requested five seats in the upcoming Maharashtra state elections. However, alliance leaders from Congress, Shiv Sena (UBT), and NCP (Sharad Pawar faction) have not provided a clear response

The Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance appears to be in trouble once again ahead of the Maharashtra Assembly elections, as a rift has reportedly emerged within the member parties. According to media reports, Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav is not happy with the seat-sharing arrangement by MVA in Maharashtra. The state president of SP, Abu Azmi, requested five seats in the upcoming Maharashtra state elections. However, alliance leaders from Congress, Shiv Sena (UBT), and NCP (Sharad Pawar faction) have not provided a clear response on seat sharing to SP.

Abu Azmi has hinted that there is discontent among the alliance partners due to the lack of assurance on seat allocation. There are 288 Assembly seats in Maharashtra. So far, the three major parties in MVA have been allocated 85 seats each. Only 33 seats remain for negotiations with the smaller allies, including SP.

SP has already issued AB forms to its candidates for the constituencies of Dhule City, Malegaon Central, Bhiwandi East, Bhiwandi West, and Mankhurd Shivaji Nagar. Azmi is a sitting MLA from Mankhurd Shivaji Nagar, while Riyaz Shaikh is the MLA from Bhiwandi East. There is significant minority voter influence in these seats, which makes SP confident that it will win them.

Recently, Akhilesh Yadav held several rallies in Dhule City and Malegaon Outer, urging MVA leaders to engage with SP’s requests. As there has been no specific response from Congress, NCP, and Shiv Sena (UBT), Azmi is reportedly becoming frustrated. He has noted that SP has already reduced its seat demand from 12 to five. However, as MVA leadership is not responding to the request, SP is planning to contest on 20 seats in Maharashtra, Azmi noted.

On the other hand, Congress sources told Live Hindustan that discussions on seat sharing are underway and that some seats, such as Dhule City, are under contention, as Shiv Sena has a stronghold in the area.

Earlier, media reported that there was a widening rift between the Maha Vikas Aghadi alliance partners. Shiv Sena UBT has reportedly refused to hold seat-sharing discussions with Congress state president Nana Patole, an indication that things are not well for the MVA alliance ahead of Maharashtra state elections.

A day after the Maha Vikas Alliance (MVA), comprising of Congress, NCP, and Shiv Sena UBT, claimed that a consensus had been reached on 260 of the 288 Assembly constituencies, Shiv Sena UBT leader Sanjay Raut refuted it by saying that agreement had reached only on 200 seats and took a swipe at the Congress leader Nana Patole, without naming him, stating that Congress leaders in Maharashtra were incapable of taking decisions.

On Sunday, Samajwadi Party leader and actor Swara Bhaskar’s husband Fahad Ahmad joined the Nationalist Congress Party (Sharad Chandra Pawar). He has been given a ticket from from the Anushakti Nagar seat against Sana Malik of NCP (Ajit Pawar).

Maharashtra Assembly Elections

Voting for the Maharashtra Assembly Elections is scheduled for 20th November 2024, with results set to be announced on 23rd November 2024, alongside the results of the Jharkhand Assembly Elections.