In response to growing discontent among leaders of Shiv Sena and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar flew to Delhi on Friday to hold urgent seat-sharing talks. The move comes amid reports suggesting that both allies of the BJP will be limited to single-digit seats in Maharashtra, sparking concerns among party members.
The discontent among leaders surfaced following Union Home Minister Amit Shah's visit on Wednesday, during which reports emerged suggesting that Shiv Sena would receive only nine and NCP barely five Lok Sabha seats out of the 48 in Maharashtra. However, both parties denied that a final decision was made during the meeting with Shah, insisting that it was merely a preliminary discussion.
Shinde, who was in Kolhapur at the time, expressed confidence in the alliance's ability to resolve the issue, stating, "There is no reason to worry. The alliance has maintained good communication and will continue to do so with regards to seat-sharing arrangement." Meanwhile, NCP leaders, including Ajit Pawar, Sunil Tatkare, and Rajya Sabha MP Praful Patel, reiterated their demand for 11 LS seats but faced uncertainty over whether the BJP would accept the request.
A senior NCP leader and minister emphasized the importance of providing a respectable number of seats to allies, noting that denying seats could fuel allegations of the BJP's attempts to control Maharashtra politics. As of now, a final decision on seat-sharing had not been reached at the time of writing this report, leaving the matter unresolved for the time being.