Uddhav’s Sena refuses to hold seat-sharing talks with Maharashtra Congress chief

Congress high command swings into action; Ramesh Chennithala to meet Uddhav Thackeray to pacify him

Seat-sharing talks have hit a roadblock in Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) in Maharashtra as the Shiv Sena (UBT) has refused to hold discussions with Maharashtra Congress president Nana Patole, informed sources told The Hindu. After the stand has been communicated to the party high command, the Congress’s Maharashtra in-charge Ramesh Chennithala is slated to meet Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray at his residence on Saturday (October 19, 2024) to pacify him.

“We will finalise the seat sharing in a few days. There is no problem. I will meet Mr. Uddhav Thackeray,” Mr. Chennithala told The Hindu.

Meanwhile, the Shiv Sena UBT and the NCP (SP) held another round of talks on Friday (October 18, 2024). The Congress was absent.

“In an alliance, when there are so many parties, everyone wants more seats for themselves. But one should not stretch so much that things will break,” Mr. Thackeray told reporters on Friday (October 18, 2024).

Top sources in the Sena UBT said it had been communicated to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi that the talks will not continue if Mr. Patole was holding them. “His [Mr. Patole’s] approach is not right. The Congress is not the only party on the table. And he cannot take the call for everything, like he is the biggest leader. Alliance dharma has to be maintained by everyone. There is no problem with the Congress per se,” a senior leader said on condition of anonymity.

Vidarbha logjam

The sources said the talks soured over discussion on Vidarbha, where both the Congress and the Sena (UBT) have staked claim to a few seats. “When seat-sharing discussion goes on, there are differences everywhere. That is not the point,” a leader said, adding that the party had already spoken with the Congress high command to communicate its displeasure with the way Mr. Patole was handling the talks.

Mr. Patole remained unavailable for comments.

The MVA said it had been able to achieve consensus on almost 80% seats till now. But differences over Vidarbha persisted for long.

Published - October 18, 2024 09:42 pm IST