Irked by the tiresome delays in finalising the seat-sharing, the Maharashtra Samajwadi Party (SP) has served a day’s ultimatum to the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) to take a decision, failing which it would go solo in the state Assembly elections, here on Friday. An apparently livid Samajwadi Party state president Abu Asim Azmi called on MVA ally and Nationalist Congress Party (SP) President Sharad Pawar and discussed his grievances and the need to allot seats to the smaller allies on priority.
After emerging from the meeting, Azmi said that the procrastination over giving seats to smaller allies was “not good” for the alliance and was creating doubts and uncertainties among the partners. “We have already announced our candidates for five seats… We shall ensure their victory. If they don’t allot our share by tomorrow, then we shall quit the MVA and contest independently. We have candidates ready for up to 25 seats and we shall field them,” warned Azmi. He said that he was losing faith in the Congress as it has repeatedly been assuring that the issue would be resolved in a day or so, but that does not seem to be happening, with the Congress-SS (UBT) purportedly at loggerheads over some seats. “At the last minute, a day before the nomination deadline, they will tell us that nothing can be done as all the seats have been distributed, leaving us out,” said Azmi, referring to what he called his ‘past experiences’ in the Lok Sabha.
The MVA’s main allies, Congress-NCP (SP)-SS (UBT) have been embroiled in prolonged and multiple rounds of discussions for sharing the 288 Assembly seats, almost tiring the other partners who want to name their candidates, file nominations, and start the poll campaign. Till now, the three parties have reached an agreement for 85 seats each (255), and arrived at a loose understanding on another 15 seats (270), while the remaining 18 shall be distributed among the allies like SP, Peasants & Workers Party, CPI, CPI (M), AAP, etc.
Based on the current status, the three main allies have already announced their candidates for around 140 seats in their first lists, and more candidates are likely to be named in a day or so, as the October 29 deadline for filing nominations with the Election Commission of India looms ahead. In a pre-emptive move, the SP has named five candidates and other smaller allies have also finalised a few of their nominees, yet eagerly awaiting the green signal from the three major parties.
–IANS
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