Mumbai, Nov 22 (PTI) The Congress in Maharashtra appeared divided on allying with the MNS in the upcoming local body polls, with the grand old party’s senior leader Vijay Wadettiwar favouring a united contest, while MP Varsha Gaikwad said it was firm on not aligning with the Raj Thackeray-led party in Mumbai.
Maharashtra Congress chief Harshwardhan Sapkal said the party’s Mumbai unit will decide whom to ally with at the local level for municipal corporation polls.
The ruling BJP, however, attacked the Congress over the possible tie-up with the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS), and said it was changing its stand as per its own convenience.
Talking to reporters on Saturday, Wadettiwar referred to NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar’s statement underlining the importance of Opposition unity for defeating the BJP.
“Ultimately, ideology matters. We are positive towards a united fight, including with the MNS. Everyone must come together to defeat the BJP,” the Congress Legislature Party leader said.
He referred to the MNS’ participation in the ‘Satyacha Morcha’ organised by the opposition MVA in Mumbai earlier this month against the alleged discrepancies in the voters’ list.
He, however, suggested that the Congress wouldn’t compromise on its ideology for forging alliances.
Wadettiwar’s open support for MNS flies in the face of the Mumbai Congress unit, which had announced to go solo in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) polls.
Reacting to Wadettiwar’s remarks, Mumbai Congress chief Varsha Gaikwad said he spoke about alliances at the state level, while the party’s Mumbai unit has already made its stand clear that it will not align with the MNS for the BMC elections.
She had earlier said that the Congress will never tie-up with those people who take the law into their hands and intimidate others.
Elections to the 246 municipal councils and 42 nagar panchayats in the state will be held on December 2, while the civic corporation polls are expected to take place in January 2026.
Talking to reporters in Beed, state Congress chief Sapkal said, “Sharad Pawar is a senior leader, but the decision on forging alliances in Mumbai will be taken by the party’s city unit.” The growing proximity between Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT), a member of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), and MNS headed by his cousin Raj Thackeray, had apparently shaped the Congress’s decision to contest elections independently.
Wadettiwar, meanwhile, claimed that the BJP’s internal surveys predicting significant gains for the party in the upcoming Mumbai civic polls were “fabricated”.
“It is a fictional narrative created by the BJP. This is a desperate attempt to influence public perception. Many new voter identity cards mysteriously appeared in Mumbai yesterday; perhaps the BJP wants to repeat what they did in Bihar. They want to end democracy,” he alleged.
Senior BJP leader and Maharashtra minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule criticised the Congress for what he described as its “politically convenient” shift in stand over aligning with the MNS.
Bawankule said the Congress had earlier firmly opposed any alliance with the MNS due to the latter’s aggressive agitations against Hindi-speaking people.
“The party leadership had adopted that stance, fearing a backlash from voters in the recently held Bihar assembly elections. Now the Congress is changing its stand for its own convenience ahead of civic polls in Maharashtra,” he alleged.
Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut said the decision of the Mumbai Congress to not ally with the MNS could be “personal”, and it is the people’s wish that the MNS and his party come together.
In a post on X, the ailing Rajya Sabha member said the Sharad Pawar-led NCP (SP) and the Left parties, too, have come together to save Mumbai.
“The decision to not ally with the MNS till the central leadership gives nod could be a personal one by the Mumbai Congress,” he said.
Meanwhile, reacting to MNS leader Sandeep Deshpande calling Congress an amoeba, Congress spokesperson Sachin Sawant said, “Science tells how an amoeba holds its ground. And politics tells how some change colours.” “Rather than changing colours like a chameleon out of fear of challenges in every election, the Congress has the ability to hold its ground like an amoeba, facing every upcoming challenge,” he said. PTI ND MR PR NSK NP
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