Shiv Sena (UBT) Open to Alliance with VBA for LS Polls if MVA Fails on Seat-Sharing, Says Prakash Ambedkar

Prakash Ambedkar, the chief of Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA), urged Shiv Sena (UBT) to form an alliance with VBA for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections in Maharashtra in case the members of Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) are unable to reach a consensus on the seat-sharing arrangement. He suggested that the Uddhav Thackeray-led party and the VBA could potentially contest 24 seats each in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. 

MVA should come up with a seat-sharing formula (for LS polls) now. The Shiv Sena (UBT) should reveal the number of seats it would contest in alliance with Congress and NCP, he told reporters after deposing before the Koregaon Bhima Commission probing the alleged caste violence of January 1, 2018.

The VBA has already clarified that if sharing of seats doesn’t work out among the MVA constituents, they (Shiv Sena-UBT) can ally with us (VBA) and we can contest 24 seats each (in Lok Sabha elections), he said.  Maharashtra, being a significant state, contributes 48 members to the Lok Sabha. While an official confirmation regarding the inclusion of Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) in the opposition INDIA bloc is pending, Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut declared on Monday that the Aghadi led by Ambedkar is unequivocally part of the opposition alliance in Maharashtra, gearing up to confront the BJP in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls.

Ambedkar also claimed that the information regarding advance inputs received by the police and district administration about the January 1, 2018 violence during the bicentennial anniversary of the Koregaon Bhima battle was not placed before the inquiry panel. I have requested the commission to collect this information during my deposition today. The deposition of Devendra Fadnavis, the then chief minister and home minister, is paramount in the inquiry, he said.