Maharashtra elections: MVA struggling to finalise seat-sharing pact

MVA faces seat-sharing struggles ahead of the November 20 assembly elections, with key negotiations ongoing among Congress, Shiv Sena (UBT), and NCP

Mumbai: With the Election Commission of India (ECI) announcing November 20 as the date for the Maharashtra assembly elections, the opposition Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) is still floundering through the turbulent waters of seat-sharing negotiations.

Mumbai, Aug 16 (ANI): Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar) (NCP-SCP) Chief Sharad Pawar in conversation with Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) Chief Uddhav Thackeray and Maharashtra Congress Chief Nana Patole during the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) meeting, at Shanmukhananda Auditorium, in Mumbai on Friday. (ANI Photo) (Sandeep Mahankal)

There are 50-60 seats, largely from Mumbai and Vidarbha, where the three allies–Congress, Shiv Sena (UBT) and Nationalist Congress Party (SP)– are struggling to reach a consensus despite having multiple rounds of discussions, according to people aware of the matter.

The Congress is looking to contest 110-120 seats, while the Shiv Sena (UBT) wants 90-100 and NCP (SP) is gunning for around 80. The MVA is planning to release its first candidate list by October 18, according to leaders from the opposition alliance.

The stalemate is broadly related to Mumbai and Vidarbha, two regions that account for 98 seats out of the assembly’s 288. The Congress and Shiv Sena (UBT) have high stakes in the regions, and both parties are unwilling to compromise.

In Mumbai, the tussle over key seats reflects not just local ambitions but the shifting dynamics in the backdrop of the Haryana election results, in which the Congress suffered an unexpected defeat to the BJP for the third straight time. The impasse continues on at least eight of Mumbai’s 36 assembly seats: Byculla, Vandre East, Versova, Jogeshwari East, Ghatkopar East, Sion-Koliwada, Dharavi and Kurla.

“We accepted Shiv Sena (UBT) as a ‘big brother’ considering their strength in Mumbai and accepted to take only 14 of 36 seats, but they want to include around five seats where the chances for Congress to win are bleak as they have been BJP’s bastions for years,” said a Congress leader. “In a way, Shiv Sena is giving only eight to nine seats, which makes no sense for us to accept.”

The seats in question are Vile Parle, Mulund, Malabar Hill and Borivali. The Congress has not won Vile Parle since 2009; the BJP has been winning Mulund for the last seven elections; the BJP’s Mangal Prabhat Lodha has bagged the Malabar Hill seat for the past six polls; and the party has been undefeated in Borivali since 1978.

In Vidarbha, the Congress wants to contest the maximum number of seats. It is staunchly defending its claim over Nagpur’s seats, emphasising its past successes in the region, whereas the Shiv Sena has staked its claim on five seats: Nagpur South, Nagpur East, Ramtek, Kamthi and Umred. “We’ve laid the groundwork here,” said a Congress leader. “It’s only fair we build on that momentum.” The Congress won five of the 10 Lok Sabha seats in Vidarbha in the 2024 general elections.

However, the Shiv Sena (UBT) is not backing down. “We’ve shown our loyalty by conceding seats in previous elections,” said a party strategist. “Now, it’s time for Congress to reciprocate.” He was referring to the Ramtek and Amravati seats, which the party conceded to the Congress during the Lok Sabha elections. “We would have been in a better position had we contested the Lok Sabha elections on both the seats,” the leader added. The Congress won both seats in the Lok Sabha elections.

Currently, Nagpur South is represented by first-term MLA Mohan Mate, and the Nagpur East seat is held by three-term BJP MLA Krishna Khopde. In 2019, the Congress contested all six seats in Nagpur district and won two of them—Nagpur West and Nagpur North. The party had an alliance with the undivided NCP.

As far as the Ramtek assembly seat is concerned, it was won by independent MLA Ashish Jaiswal, who is with chief minister Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena. The BJP has been winning Kamthi for the last four elections against the Congress. While the Congress’ Raju Parve won the Umred seat in the last assembly elections, he defected to the Shiv Sena during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections to contest the Ramtek Lok Sabha seat. He was defeated by Congress candidate Shyamkumar Barve by over 76,000 votes.

The inclusion of the Samajwadi Party (SP) adds another layer of complexity to the MVA’s negotiations. The party’s state president Abu Asim Azmi’s push for Anushakti Nagar was resisted by NCP (SP), resulting in a standoff. “We’re not just handing over seats; we’re discussing our future,” said an NCP (SP) leader, who also pointed out the potential impact of Sana Shaikh, daughter of two-term NCP MLA Nawab Malik, contesting the seat. Malik is set to contest the polls from Mankhurd-Shivaji Nagar against Azmi.

SP is likely to get three seats in the seat-sharing agreement. The Peasants and Workers Party of India (PWP) is also likely to get three, and Communist Party of India (CPI-M) is expected to get two, according to people aware of the matter.

As discussions continue, the clock is ticking. “With the elections on the horizon, MVA leaders must find common ground. We need to focus on what unites us,” said an a MVA leader privy to the development.

With emotions running high and stakes even higher, the coming days will be crucial in determining whether the MVA can overcome its internal divisions and present a united front against their common adversaries.