Ahead of the nomination process getting underway,Mahayuti alliance is grappling with an intense, last-minute seat-sharing deadlock over 17 Legislative Council (MLC) seats.
The primary sticking points include
the Contested Seats – disagreements center around 2-3 hotly contested constituencies, primarily Thane, Sambhajinagar, and Raigad-Ratnagiri-Sindhudurg.
Backed by its overwhelming majority in the recent assembly elections, the BJP is seeking to contest 11 to 12 of the 17 seats. Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena is firm on securing 7 seats. Meanwhile, the Ajit Pawar-led NCP is demanding at least 3, causing a severe logjam.High-Level Intervention: Because of the deadlock, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde flew to Delhi to resolve the dispute with central BJP leadership.The polling for these 16 biennial seats and one by-election is slated for June 18.
News Edit KV Raman
