NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar said on Thursday that the opposition bloc Maha Vikas Aghadi will start its campaign for the upcoming Maharashtra assembly elections on November 6. Pawar said the campaign will be spearheaded by him and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray.
Speaking to a few reporters on his home turf Baramati in the Pune district, Pawar extended them Diwali greetings and said he prayed for the prosperity and well-being of the people of the state.
"I don't have much detail about it because I am not part of all these talks.. our other leaders are looking into it.. but I know there are some 10-12 seats where two nominations are being filled from alliance ...in next two-three days we will sit together to find the solution for it ....we will go among the people with a manifesto and our ideology so that we can get the support and help from the people," Pawar said.
Pawar said their poll campaign will be launched in the presence of himself, Rahul Gandhi, and Uddhav Thackeray. "We will be starting election campaigning from November 6 in the presence of Rahul Gandhi, Uddhav Thackeray and myself... I a sure the people of Maharashtra will give us immense support," he added.
Asked about the friendly fights among MVA partners NCP (SP), Congress, and Sena (UBT) in some constituencies, Pawar said there are only 10–12 seats where two candidates from MVA have filed their nomination papers. "I am confident we will find a solution in the next couple of days and resolve the issue," he said. The veteran leader said MVA will offer a "programme" (common minimum programme) to the people of the state to garner their support.
In the MVA, the Congress is contesting 103 seats, followed by the Sena (UBT), which has fielded 89 candidates and 87 seats given to NCP (SP). The Maharashtra assembly polls to elect 288 members of the House will be held on November 20 and votes will be counted on November 23.