Pune: State Congress President Nana Patole on Wednesday (September 4) stated that the party will not name a chief ministerial candidate before the Maharashtra Assembly elections. Speaking to reporters, Patole said, “A decision has been made, we will go to the polls as Maha Vikas Aghadi. After the elections, we will sit down together and decide the CM face.”
Patole also addressed seat-sharing arrangements, saying, “When Maha Vikas Aghadi's meeting is held, seat-sharing will be finalised. Everything will be decided in the meeting. We are reviewing all 288 seats with the goal of ousting the current corrupt and ‘Commission khor’ government in Maharashtra. Decisions will be made based on merit, and we have already started working towards that.”
The Maharashtra legislative assembly elections will cover 288 constituencies. The Election Commission of India has yet to announce the election dates. The upcoming elections will see a contest between the Maha Vikas Aghadi coalition, which includes the UBT Shiv Sena, NCP (Sharad Pawar faction), and Congress, and the Maha Yuti Alliance, comprising the BJP, Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde faction), and NCP (Ajit Pawar faction).
In the recent Lok Sabha elections, the Maha Vikas Aghadi alliance gained momentum, with the Shiv Sena (UBT) securing nine seats, Congress winning 13, and NCP-SP obtaining eight seats, bringing the alliance’s total to 30. Conversely, the Maha Yuti Alliance faced a setback, with the BJP winning nine seats, Shiv Sena securing seven, and NCP winning just one seat, resulting in a total of 17 for the alliance.