MVA’s seat-sharing formula finalised, Thackeray’s Sena gets 22 seats, Congress 16, Pawar’s NCP -10: Sources

Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) partners – Shiv Sena (UBT), Congress and NCP-Sharadchandra Pawar – have reached an agreement on a seat-sharing deal, said the sources on Sunday. According to sources, Shiv Sena (UBT) will contest 22 seats, while Congress 16 seats and Sharad Pawar’s NCP 10 seats.

22 seats on which Shiv Sena (UBT) may contest  are –

Ratnagiri Sindhudurg, Raigarh, Maval, Thane, Kalyan, Palghar, Mumbai South, South Central Mumbai, North West Mumbai, North Mumbai, North East Mumbai, Osmanabad, Parbhani, Aurangabad, Hingoli, Buldhana, Yavatmal, Hathkanangle (left for Swabhimani Paksha’s Raju Shetty), Jalgaon, Nashik, Shirdi and Sangli.

Congress is likely to fight on these seats: 

Nagpur, Ramtek, Bhandara Gondia, Gadchiroli, Chandrapur, Amravati, Akola (left for Vanchit Bahujan Aaghadi’s Prakash Ambedkar), Latur, Nanded, Jalna, Dhule, Nandurbar, Pune, Solapur, Kolhapur and North Central Mumbai.

Sharad Pawar’s NCP is likely to get these 10 seats:

Baramati, Shirur, Madha, Satara, Wardha, Bhiwandi, Raver, Ahmednagar, Beed and Dindori

The source said the consensus reached in the MVA after a meeting held last night. Congress was on a backfoot after Rahul Gandhi advised the party not to engage in a tug of war for the seat-sharing. 

Seat-sharing talks over, formula will be announced soon: Raut

Earlier in the day, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut on Sunday said leaders of the MVA have had their final meeting on seat sharing and the formula will be announced soon. Raut said the MVA constituents comprising the Shiv Sena (UBT), NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar) and the Congress, had their final meeting to discuss seat sharing on Saturday.

“We have resolved the little nitty gritties,” he said.

The MVA is in talks with Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi chief Prakash Ambedkar and is awaiting his response on the offer of four seats.

“When the Constitution is under threat everyone should set aside their differences and come together. We have given him (Ambedkar) a proposal for four seats, and are awaiting his response, after which we will release our seat-sharing formula,” Raut said.

Elections for the 18th Lok Sabha will begin on April 19 and votes will be counted on June 4. Maharashtra, which has 48 Lok Sabha seats, the second highest after Uttar Pradesh’s 80, will vote in five phases.