Ahead of the assembly polls in Maharashtra, NCP (SP chief) Sharad Pawar said that Congress, Shiv Sena (UBT) and his party will jointly contest the elections. He also said that seat sharing will begin soon. The assembly elections in the state are due in October.
Addressing a news conference in Pune, the NCP chief said, "As Arjuna's target (in the epic Mahabharata) was an eye (of a fish), our eyes are all set on the elections in Maharashtra. The Congress, NCP (SP) and Uddhav Thackeray's Sena (UBT) will jointly contest the Vidhan Sabha polls." He added that talks on seat-sharing in the state have not begun, but will commence soon.
Focusing on the unity of entire opposition parties in the struggle against Mahayuti, Pawar said that it is the moral responsibility of the major opposition parties in Maharashtra to protect the interests of smaller allies in the state assembly polls, which were part of the coalition in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
"But like these three parties, the Left parties, Peasants and Workers Party (PWP) were also a part of the coalition but we could not give them seats in the Lok Sabha. It is our moral responsibility to protect the interests of these parties," he said.
Sharad Pawar of Maharashtra Budget
On the question of state budget which was presented by CM Eknath Shinde on friday, Pawar said, “What happens if you go with an empty pocket in a market? It's a matter of a few days, reality will be seen soon."
It must be mentioned here that the NCP (SP), Congress and the Shiv Sena (UBT) are constituents of the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), which remained in power in Maharashtra from November 2019 till June 2022 before the collapse of the Uddhav Thackeray-led government.
Earlier Pwar had said that there is no single face but a collective face of alliance for assembly elections, which is considered by many as a setback for Uddhav Thackeray.
Notably, four months ahead of the state polls, Eknath Shinde presented the budget for 2024-25 and assured a monthly allowance of Rs 1,500 to women aged 21 to 60, three free LPG cylinders each year for households, farmer-friendly steps and a stipend of Rs 10,000 per month to youths for skill training.
(With PTI Inputs)
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