Sanjay Raut says Prakash Ambedkar's VBA part of Maharashtra's oppn alliance

Sanjay Raut/ File Photo

Sanjay Raut, a Shiv Sena (UBT) MP, claimed on Monday that Prakash Ambedkar's Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) is a vital member of Maharashtra's opposition alliance, which has been carefully built to oppose the ruling BJP in the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections.

Raut told the reporters in Mumbai that Prakash Ambedkar, NCP chairman Sharad Pawar, and Sena (UBT) head Uddhav Thackeray have discussed the Lok Sabha elections and seat-sharing agreements several times. Maharashtra has 48 Lok Sabha seats, according to a PTI report.

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According to the report, Raut emphasised Ambedkar's prior participation in Lok Sabha elections from Akola, Maharashtra, and underlined the Sena's support for his probable candidature this time. Highlighting the VBA's strong association, Raut stated, "The VBA is very much part of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA)."

The Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) coalition consists of the Shiv Sena (UBT), the Sharad Pawar-led NCP, and the Congress. Raut claimed that certain judgements had been finalised, implying a strong voter aversion to Prime Minister Narendra Modi due to his purported violation of the Constitution drafted by Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar, the report added.

Notably, the Shiv Sena (UBT) and Prakash Ambedkar's Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi established an alliance in January of last year. Despite this assertion, there has been no official announcement of the VBA's membership in the opposition INDIA bloc, an alliance created by numerous parties to fight the incumbent NDA in the next Lok Sabha elections.

In the 2019 elections, the VBA contested Maharashtra's Lok Sabha seats on its own, affecting the Congress' electoral hopes in some constituencies.

Sanjay Raut had earlier stated that in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, seats will be shared between the Sena, Congress, NCP, and Prakash Ambedkar's Vanchit Bahujan Aaghadi (VBA).

He had said, "I discussed with the senior leaders of the party who are a part of the high-level committee. In a few days, we'll sit with the committee formed by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and our primary discussions will come to an end... Our talks on seat sharing with Congress, NCP, Shiv Sena, and Prakash Ambedkar (Vanchit Bahujan Aaghadi chief) are almost done. It has been a very positive discussion. We can't see any clashes between the four parties...We are in talks with Congress and Prakash Ambedkar."