Cracks within the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA), the opposition front of Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), Shiv Sena (UBT) and the Congress, appeared wide open on Monday when the Congress expressed its displeasure over the treatment meted to them by the other two alliance partners.
Tussle after Mahad Congress leader joins Sena
The Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) Chief Nana Patole accused Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Uddhav Thackeray of weakening the MVA. The criticism followed Snehal Jagtap, the Congress leader from Mahad, joining the Shiv Sena (UBT).
Patole also appeared to be taking a cautious stand over new entries in the NCP in Solapur district when he said that discussion on Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha seats within the MVA will be held soon, while adding that the Solapur Lok Sabha seat belongs to the Congress party and that the strength of Congress will further increase in the district.
Patole says had warned Thackeray against Jagtap's inclusion
Mahad city council president Snehal Jagtap on Saturday left the Congress to join Shiv Sena (UBT) in presence of Uddhav Thackeray. Thackeray, who had been on lookout for a good candidate against sitting MLA Shiv Sena’s Bharat Gogawale, zeroed in on Snehal Jagtap’s name because of her family background and popularity in the town. Snehal is daughter of former Congress MLA Manik Jagtap. Shiv Sena (UBT) has said that the party shall field her against Gogawale in order to get back the seat.
Patole, however, protested the move saying that he had warned Uddhav Thackeray against induction of Snehal Jagtap to his party fold. Yet he went ahead with that. “We shall discuss this issue in the MVA meeting. That seat belongs to Congress and we shall contest the seat in assembly election,” Patole said.
Clash within MVA over Solapur politics
In a similar case, the Congress is also worried about assembly as well as parliamentary seats in Solapur. In his recent tour of the district, NCP Chief Sharad Pawar inducted in his party Abhijit Patil, the chairman of a local cooperative sugar mill, who is considered to be an aspirant for assembly seat if not the parliamentary seat. Also, a couple of months back, there was an open spat between Sharad Pawar’s grandson Rohit and senior Congress leader Sushilkumar Shinde’s daughter Praniti over the Solapur Lok Sabha seat. While Rohit had said that the leaders of MVA would decide who will contest the seat, Praniti had tried to brush him away asking, “Who is Rohit Pawar?”
Patole, who was in Solapur today, without mentioning any name, but in an obvious reference to these incidents, said that after the Karnataka assembly elections, constituents of the MVA shall sit together and discuss the seat allocation for the upcoming assembly and Lok Sabha elections.
“Solapur Lok Sabha seat belongs to Congress. Congress candidates have been contesting elections from this constituency for many years and the Congress party is standing strong in Solapur district. There is no factionalism in the district, everyone is working unitedly. Young people are also connecting with the Congress party in large numbers and with the blessings of the people, the Congress party will again perform well in the district,” Patole said while speaking to party workers in Solapur.
