Mumbai: Undeterred by Maharashtra Navnirman Sena's move to go saffron and its possible tie up with BJP, the Maha Vikas Aghadi partners Shiv Sena, NCP and Congress have launched parleys for fighting elections to the 10 municipal corporations, including BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation together. These elections are slated for February 2022. Shiv Sena, NCP and Congress will put in place a comprehensive road map for a joint fight with a sole aim to defeat BJP, even though the party wants to build up its campaign around Hindutva, Citizenship Amendment Act, National Population Register and National Citizens Register.
BJP, whose over two and half decade old alliance ended with Sena, has declared that the party will win the 2022 Mumbai civic elections and give the city a mayor. Some of its leaders, including former Finance Minister Sudhir Mungantiwar, had hinted at an alliance with MNS in the civic and local body polls.
Thackeray's press advisor Harshal Pradhan told FPJ,'' We are least bothered about the opposition's strategy. We are concentrating on our alliance and a better future for the state and its citizens.''
Senior leaders of the three parties have held preliminary talks on fighting ensuing elections to civic and local bodies and zilla parishads together by arriving at a respectable seat sharing arrangement. This is despite Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray reiterating that, though he had found new allies in state politics, he had not changed his "saffron" colour. Further, NCP and Congress have no objection against Thackeray going to Ayodhya after the completion of 100 days of the MVA government.
NCP spokesman and Minister of Minority Affair Nawab Malik said, Shiv Sena, Congress and his party have come together to form a government in Maharashtra on the common minimum programme. ''An individual party can take its own stand to spread its wings, but when it comes to alliance politics, it will be based on CMP,'' he noted.
At the recently held elections to six zilla parishads, BJP lost five and won Dhule. However, the MVA alliance partners showed impressive performance. Already CM Uddhav Thackeray, NCP chief Sharad Pawar and state Congress chief Balasaheb Thorat have made separate statements that there has been pressure from grass root workers to contest the coming elections jointly to checkmate BJP.
