The Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), Maharashtra’s opposition alliance, has reached an agreement on seat-sharing for the upcoming state Assembly elections, as per media reports. Under the proposed arrangement, Congress is likely to contest 105-110 seats, Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena (UBT) will be allotted 90-95 seats, and Sharad Pawar’s Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) will field candidates in 75-80 constituencies

Alliance Strategy to Defeat Mahayuti

The MVA, which came together after the 2019 state elections, aims to challenge the ruling Mahayuti alliance, which consists of the BJP, Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena, and the Ajit Pawar faction of the NCP. The opposition hopes to replicate their performance from the recent Lok Sabha elections, where they secured 30 seats compared to Mahayuti’s 17.

Resolving Seat-Sharing Disputes

Internal disagreements over seat-sharing initially caused tensions within the MVA. Congress leader Nana Patole and Shiv Sena (UBT)’s Sanjay Raut had publicly sparred over seat allocation. To address the issue, the MVA leaders held a nine-hour meeting at the Trident Hotel in Mumbai. Eventually, both Congress and Shiv Sena (UBT) leaders sought the mediation of NCP chief Sharad Pawar, who helped resolve the disputes.

Election Dates

The Maharashtra Assembly elections for the 288-member house will be held in a single phase on November 20, with results expected on November 23.