30 March,2024 12:16 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
Naseem Khan. File Pic/X
Maharashtra Congress Working President Arif Naseem Khan expressed disappointment that the Shiv Sena (UBT) has announced candidates for constituencies historically held by the Congress.
Khan indicated unhappiness while emphasising the significance of coalition unity. Despite the disappointment, Congress intends to avoid confrontation and instead conduct a "friendly fight" on select seats, communicating the concerns of Maharashtra Congress workers and leaders to the central leadership, reported ANI.
"It's saddening when our coalition partner announces candidates on the seats that are traditional seats of Congress but we will avoid such thing to save the nation which is a bigger cause. We will have a friendly fight on those seats. We have already conveyed the view of Maharashtra Congress workers and leaders to the central leadership about the friendly fight on 5-6 seats," Arif Naseem Khan told the news agency.
According to the ANI report, the Shiv Sena (UBT) had revealed its first list of candidates for the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections 2024, which includes renowned names such as Arvind Sawant and Anant Geete, who will run in the South Mumbai and Raigad constituencies, respectively. They had announced candidates for the following seats Raigad, Ratnagiri, Thane, Parbhani, Buldhana, Yavatmal, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Shirdi, South Mumbai, North West Mumbai, North East Mumbai, Sangli, Hingoli, Dharshiv, Nasik and Maval seats.
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Sanjay Raut shared the list on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter) earlier this week which showed fissures among the Maha Vikas Aghadi as the Congress took objection to Shiv Sena (UBT)'s unilateral approach and intrusion into its stronghold constituencies.
The UBT Sena, allied with the Congress and the NCP (Sharad Pawar), seeks to challenge the BJP in Maharashtra's political landscape. However, the choice to run in Congress-held districts has strained coalition dynamics, pushing Congress leaders to seek help from the central leadership, the ANI report stated.
The Lok Sabha Elections 2024 in Maharashtra, which will be held in five parts, are critical, as the state has a considerable representation in the lower house of Parliament. Previous elections have seen the BJP and Shiv Sena emerge as prominent groups, changing the state's political landscape, it added.
