Congress, NCP seal Maharashta deal, will contest 20 seats each

MUMBAI: Congress president Rahul Gandhi called on NCP chief Sharad Pawar on Wednesday to resolve the dispute over the sharing of eight seats in the state for the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections. Of Maharashtra’s 48 LS seats, the two parties have reached an agreement on 40 seats, sharing 20 apiece.

A week ago, during a meeting between senior Congress and NCP leaders, it was proposed that a decision on the disputed seats should be taken by Pawar and Gandhi. Accordingly, Gandhi, accompanied by AICC general secretary Malikarjun Kharge, called on Pawar to resolve the row.

The disputed seats are: Jalna, Pune, Ahmednagar, Aurangabad, Yavatmal, Raver, Ratnigiri and Nandurbar. NCP has staked a claim on Pune, Aurangabad, Nandurbar and Ratnagiri, which were contested by Congress in the 2014 LS elections. On the other hand, Congress wants the remaining four, which were contested by NCP in 2014. In Congress circles, it is believed that Pawar may contest from Pune, though he has denied this.

Gandhi’s talks with Pawar were preceded by a meeting with state Congress chief Ashok Chavan, Mumbai party chief Sanjay Nirupam and leader of opposition in the legislative assembly Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil on the political situation in the state and the seat-sharing row. Confirming Gandhi and Pawar’s meet, Chavan said, “I am sure the row will be resolved amicably.”

A senior NCP leader said a bigger problem for both parties is reaching adjustments with smaller like-minded parties on seats. From their share of seats, the two major parties will have to part with a few. “We will have to accommodate CPM, Bahujan Vikas Aghadi and RPI factions. If Dalit leader Prakash Ambedkar agrees, we are prepared to leave Akola for him, Palghar for Bahujan Vikas Aghadi and Dindori for CPM. Other small parties are not interested in contesting the LS polls, but they expect Congress-NCP to accommodate them in state assembly polls,” he said.