Mumbai, Sep 24 (PTI) Ahead of the Maharashtra assembly polls, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Anil Desai on Tuesday said there are no differences among the opposition bloc allies, but asserted that winnability factor will be a key criteria for seat-sharing.
Desai, the Lok Sabha member from Mumbai South Central constituency, told PTI Videos that the Maha Vikas Aghadi’s (MVA) seat-sharing talks are going on smoothly and the Sena (UBT) will contest maximum seats in Mumbai, which has been its bastion.
“There are no differences among the opposition alliance partners, as projected,” Desai said in an interview.
There is no deadlock among the MVA partners — Uddhav Thackeray-led Sena (UBT), Congress and Sharad Pawar’s NCP (SP) — on any specific constituency and seat-sharing details will be disclosed soon, he said.
Elections to the 288-member Maharashtra assembly are likely to be held in November.
Asked whether the Shiv Sena (UBT) will contest maximum seats in Mumbai, Desai said, “Yes. Mumbai is also Shiv Sena’s bastion and it will continue to be so, and so will be MMR (Mumbai Metropolitan Region), Konkan and other parts of the state.” “However, the winning factor is important and it will be an important criteria for seat-sharing irrespective of who gets how many seats,” he said.
On whether the Shiv Sena (UBT) will give tickets to Muslims, Desai said the decision on it will be taken by party chief Uddhav Thackeray.
Tickets will also be given to new and young faces as Aaditya Thackeray represents the youth face of the party, he said.
On Maharashtra Navnirman Sena president Raj Thackeray’s recent meeting with state Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Desai dubbed MNS the “B” team of the BJP and claimed it works as per its directions.
Asked if Uddhav Thackeray will field any candidate against his estranged cousin Raj Thackeray’s son Amit Thackeray in the upcoming polls, Desai parried the question and said a decision on this will be taken by his party head.
Desai also defended Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s remarks on reservation during his recent trip to the US, which had evoked sharp reactions in India.
He claimed Gandhi’s remarks were totally misinterpreted through edited video clips.
Notably, Gandhi told students of the Georgetown University that the Congress would think of scrapping reservations when “India is a fair place”, which he said is not the case right now.
However, at a press interaction in the US later, Gandhi said he was misquoted to show he was against reservations.
“I have been saying again and again and again, we are going to increase reservations beyond 50 per cent,” the Lok Sabha member clarified. PTI PS PR GK
This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.