Lok Sabha Elections 2024: As the schedule for the Lok Sabha elections has been announced, the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) outreach to old and new alliance partners continues. In some states, the saffron party has already finalised seat-sharing while talks are underway in others. Maharashtra is another state which has the maximum Lok Sabha seats (48) after Uttar Pradesh with 80 parliamentary seats. For the BJP to achieve its 400-plus target in the upcoming polls, its performance in Maharashtra holds significant importance.
The BJP is already in alliance with breakaway factions of Shiv Sena (led by CM Eknath Shinde) and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP-led by Deputy Ajit Pawar). Amid this, to ensure it gets maximum seats in Maharashtra, the party is in talks with Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray, the nephew of Late Bal Thackeray.
A meeting between Raj and Union Home Minister Amit Shah was also held in Delhi in which both the leaders discussed seat-sharing.
According to reports, MNS wants to contest on two seats in Maharashtra -- one the South Mumbai and the other outside Mumbai. Reports say the saffron party may allot South Mumbai seat to Raj Thackeray's party.
Why BJP wants to align with MNS despite having alliance with Shiv Sena and NCP in Maharashtra?
Hindutva ideology
One possible reason for the BJP to align with MNS is party's Hindutva ideology, to cater to a larger voter base, especially after the split of Shiv Sena which too followed a Hindutva ideology but Uddhav's faction later sided with Congress and Sharad Pawar's NCP.
If BJP and MNS come together, it may benefit both the parties in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.
BMC elections
Another reason why the BJP would like to align with Raj Thackeray is party's presence in Mumbai's local body. If both the parties contest elections together, and given that Shinde's Sena and Ajit Pawar's NCP are also with the saffron party, the NDA alliance may have a major advantage.
Sentiment towards Bal Thackeray
Raj Thackeray's MNS, who is the nephew of the late Bal Thackeray, is a regionalist right-wing-based party state and operates on the ideology of Hindutva and Marathi manus and may attract vote bank of Uddhav's sena ever since it aligned with Congress, and NCP.
Bal Thackeray, during his time, was never in favour of an alliance with Congress or even the Nationalist Congress Party and have often made bitter remarks against both the parties.
MNS Assembly election performance in 2009, 2014 and 2019
In 2009, MNS contested on 143 seats in Maharashtra Assembyl elections and won a total of 13 seats. It garnered a total vote share of 5.71 per cent.
In 2014, Raj Thackeray's party could only manage to win just one seat out of 219 it contested. It received an overall voteshare of 3.15 per cent.
In 2019 also, MNS won just one seat out of 101 it contested and bagged a total vote share of 2.25 per cent.
MNS performance in BMC elections in 2012 and 2017
In Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections 2012 and 2017, Raj Thackeray's Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) won 27 out of 227 seats and 7 in 2017 elections.
Apart from BMC, MNS also has some presence in Nashik, Pune, Kalyan-Dombivali and Jalgaon Municipal Corporations.
