Will go with CM face picked by Sharad’s NCP, Cong: Uddhav

Mumbai, August 16

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“Will back any CM candidate announced by the Congress and NCP (SP),” said Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray on Friday. He insisted that Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) should decide its chief ministerial face first rather than deciding after the elections on the basis of the seat share.

However, his MVA ally Sharad Pawar, who heads the NCP (SP), did not touch upon the contentious issue. He stressed the need for a single-point agenda to change the government in Maharashtra to improve the situation in the state. Pawar told the MVA cadres that the three partners would take along the Left outfits, Peasants and Workers Party of India and Samajwadi Party by giving them due respect, and present a united front before the people of the state.

The Congress also pitched for focussing on unseating the BJP-led Mahayuti coalition. The party’s state unit chief, Nana Patole, said the leaders of the INDIA bloc would decide on the CM candidate.

Addressing MVA workers, Thackeray said if the Lok Sabha elections were to protect democracy and the Constitution, the Assembly polls were a fight to preserve Maharashtra’s self-respect.

The meeting virtually kick-started the MVA’s poll campaign ahead of the Maharashtra Assembly elections, which are likely to be held in October or November.

Citing his earlier experience with the BJP, Thackeray said the strategy of allocating CM’s post to the party with most seats could prove detrimental for the coalition. “This policy was detrimental as it would lead to one party trying to defeat the other’s candidate to maintain an upper hand in the alliance,” he added. — PTI