Amit Shah in troubleshooter mode, BJP partners in Maharashtra may get desired seat share

Growing differences within the Mahayuti, spilling over into the public, were the main focus of the airport meeting, where apart from Shah, Sena chief Shinde and NCP president Pawar, the BJP’s Devendra Fadnavis and senior NCP leader Praful Patel were present.

BJP poll managers said the party was likely to contest 150-plus seats, of the total 288 in Maharashtra, as part of the Mahayuti alliance, with the target of winning 125. “The preliminary assessment is that the party is on a strong footing in 50 constituencies. This means that in the remaining 75 seats, it will have to re-double its efforts.”

About the two partners, party leaders said that while the Shiv Sena is likely to get 75 to 80 seats, the NCP will get 55-60. This more or less aligns with the demand that the Sena and NCP have been making – 85-90 and 60 seats, respectively.

Sources said that the Union minister urged all leaders to be mindful of their actions and avoid airing differences at public fora, while working together to consolidate the Mahayuti ahead of the Maharashtra Assembly polls.

Calling it a “very good meeting”, state NCP chief Sunil Tatkare said: “We were reassured that all the Mahayuti constituents will get a respectful number of seats, and that any issues would be addressed adequately.”

Shah, who arrived in Mumbai Sunday evening, used his brief visit to also participate in the Ganesh Chaturthi festivities, visiting the Lalbaugcha Raja at Parel among other places. While Fadnavis and Shinde were present with Shah throughout, Pawar joined him only at the airport, with NCP leaders saying he was busy in Baramati with Ganesh Chaturthi.

His meeting with BJP core committee members was held at Sahyadri Guest House in Malabar Hills Sunday, and ran well past 1.30 am. A senior BJP functionary said, “Apart from taking stock of the state unit, the Union minister engaged in one-on-one discussions with key regional leaders. He did some hard talking, pointing out lacunae in their respective districts.”

A core committee member said the talks centred around political tactics, “maximising Mahayuti government policies”, and keeping in mind critical aspects such as farmers’ unrest, Dalit sentiments, and Maratha versus OBC tension.

At the heart of the Mahayuti anxiety is its performance in the recent Lok Sabha polls, when the BJP won just nine of the 28 seats it contested, with the Shiv Sena winning seven of 15 seats and the NCP one of three, winning 17 of the total 48 seats. The rival Maha Vikas Aghadi alliance won 30 seats.

In the 2019 Assembly elections, the BJP, which was then in an alliance with the undivided Shiv Sena, had won as many as 105 of the total 164 seats it contested. The Shiv Sena that Shinde leads has 40 sitting MLAs, while Ajit Pawar’s NCP has 42 sitting MLAs. The united Sena had won 56 seats in 2019, and the joint NCP 54 seats.