The Congress and the NCP have failed to reach an agreement for a pre-poll alliance in any of the 10 municipal corporations going to polls on February 1. This means that in six corporations where either of the parties is in power — Ulhasnagar, Pune, Pimpri-Chinchwad, Solapur, Amravati and Nagpur — the allies would fight each other. Of the remaining four corporations held by the Shiv Sena-BJP alliance, talks have reached a deadlock in Mumbai and remain inconclusive in Thane, Nashik and Akola. “We are the number one party in the state and they need us more than we need them. Let them contest on their own and prove their strength,” said a senior Congress functionary. “Why should we yield to a party which has very little strength in the cities going to polls?” he added. He said an alliance would be beneficial for the party in corporations ruled by the Sena, but “the demand of the NCP for seats in these cities is not in keeping with its actual strength”. He pointed out that while in Mumbai, the NCP had 14 sitting corporators and its candidates were in the second position in the last civic polls in 33 wards, the party was demanding about 80 seats. The Congress has 64 corporators here. He said that unless the NCP made realistic demands, there would be no alliance. Besides, the Congress is not willing to give any seat for the NCP in the Mumbai North-West, while the NCP wants seats in all parts of Mumbai. On Tuesday — the last day of filing nominations for elections to the Nagpur Municipal Corporation — both the parties fielded their own candidates against each other in all wards. The filing of nominations for the remaining nine corporations would begin on January 8. “The talks for seat sharing in Mumbai have stopped, not concluded,” NCP’s state chief Arun Gujarathi told The Indian Express. “We are still hopeful of a pre-poll alliance in Mumbai and the other three cities (Thane, Nashik and Akola) ruled by the Sena. Our chief Sharad Pawar is keen on alliance in these cities and has said that the secular vote should not be divided. A compromise formula could be worked out.” He further said that the decision on a pre-poll alliance with the Congress in the four Sena-ruled corporations would be taken before January 6. “In Nagpur, we have already fielded our own candidates.And we are on our own in Solapur, Pune, Pimpri-Chinchwad, Ulhasnagar and Amravati. It is politics, parties have to function as per their convenience and show their strength,” he said.
