Will contest upcoming polls alone: Maha Cong

Mumbai Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar’s statement at party’s anniversary function and his meeting with poll strategist Prashant Kishor this week have left ally Congress fuming

Mumbai Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar’s statement at party’s anniversary function and his meeting with poll strategist Prashant Kishor this week have left ally Congress fuming. The Maharashtra Congress, while reacting sharply to the developments, has said that it will go solo in all the elections being held henceforth in Maharashtra and its allies should not take them for granted.

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Pawar, during the celebration of NCP’s 22nd foundation on Thursday, had said that Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA), the alliance of Shiv Sena, NCP and Congress in power in the state, will fight the next Lok Sabha and assembly polls together. He said that MVA will complete its term and also hailed Shiv Sena for standing firm on its commitments on political support. A day after it, Pawar along with other party leaders, met poll strategist Prashant Kishor at former’s Mumbai residence, leading to speculations about a national coalition against the BJP.

It was NCP spokesperson Nawab Malik who had fuelled the speculations on Saturday when he had said, “There is a need to form a formidable alliance of opposition parties against the BJP at the national level ahead of the next general elections. Pawar saheb had himself spoken about the need to have such a national alliance and had said that he would try to bring together all such forces.”

But Maharashtra Congress chief Nana Patole said that his party would fight all the forthcoming elections separately. “We have already announced that we will go solo in all the forthcoming local body elections, likely to be held from November, and assembly polls thereafter. We do not want to keep our allies in the dark and ditch them ahead of the polls. We are preparing to go solo, and they are free to do so. Congress would be the single largest party in the 2024 assembly polls,” Patole said.

Party’s working president Arif Naseem Khan said that the party will benefit if it fights the local elections on its own. “It will also help in regaining the old glory when the party used to form the government in the state single-handedly. What Patole said is the party’s official stand,” he said.

But NCP’s Malik, while reacting to statements by Congress leaders, said on Sunday that no talks were being held among the three members of the MVA alliance on the Lok Sabha or assembly elections. “Patole aspires to become the chief minister of Maharashtra, and the statement reflects it. Every party has the right to spread its wings and such statements are necessary to keep the morale of the party workers high. The MVA alliance is ruling unitedly by taking decisions close to the heart of the people. We may fight the local body elections in alliance of three or two ruling parties or even separately, depending on the political situation at the local level,” he said.

But the differences among the three allies are out in the front. The Congress, ever since the MVA government was formed in November 2019, has been complaining about being sidelined by its allies. The party leaders feel that the Sena and NCP have been on the same page when it comes to keeping Congress out of the decision-making process. NCP and Shiv Sena are likely to join hands in most of the local body elections by keeping Congress out. More than 15 municipal corporations (including Mumbai, Navi Mumbai and Thane), 29 of 36 district councils and over 90 municipal councils are going to polls over the next 20 months. This one is considered to be a mini assembly election.

BJP leader Ram Kadam said that the contradictory statements by Congress and NCP indicate the differences between the ruling parties. “It is proved that Congress is not happy with chief minister Uddhav Thackeray and hence they have been talking about going solo. It needs to be understood whether Congress’ anger is over the differences or because of the other two parties grabbing the major share of power,” Kadam said.

But Malik said that it would be wrong to conclude based on the statements that there are differences among the allies.

Political analyst Pratap Asbe said the Congress’ central leadership decides on electoral alliances, so what the state leadership says has no bearing on it. “As far as the question of putting up an alliance of opposition parties against the BJP at the national level is concerned, it all depends on what stand the Congress will take,” Asbe said.