‘We learnt a lot from Haryana… That is why the withdrawal of 80% of rebels… there is total unity, be it leaders, workers, allies’: Congress Maharashtra in-charge

The Lok Sabha verdict gave the Congress some hope and reasons to cheer. But after the Haryana upset and the poor performance in Jammu, how is Maharashtra looking for the Congress and the alliance?

The situations in Haryana and Maharashtra are different. In the parliamentary elections, we (MVA) won 31 of the 48 seats in Maharashtra. The Congress emerged as the number one party. Issues are different, strategies are different, and the way people think is different. At the same time, we learnt a lot of lessons from Haryana. That I agree. That is why we systematically worked to ensure the withdrawal of 80% of the rebels. We ensured total unity in the party. There are no differences of opinion among the senior leaders and workers. There is absolute unity among the MVA partners.

Seat sharing and everything was done amicably. All of us are working in tandem. A harmonious situation is prevailing in the MVA. Even small parties like CPM, CPI, PWP (Peasants and Workers Party) and SP have been accommodated properly in the given situation. So there is no problem in the Congress or the alliance, unlike in Haryana.

But there are still some friendly fights.

We are not going to allow any friendly fight in the MVA. We have suspended all the rebels who have not withdrawn from the race. We are not going to allow a Sangli experiment again.

One major reason for the success of the Congress and the MVA in the Lok Sabha elections was the consolidation of Dalit votes in your favour. The Opposition’s ‘save the Constitution’ narrative perhaps had some traction. Will such an issue have relevance in state elections?

That danger is there even now. The BJP wants to change the Basic Structure of the Constitution. Look at the ‘One Nation, One Election’ proposal. For that, the state elections are very important. Unless and until the BJP gets a majority in the Rajya Sabha, they cannot pass such contentious proposals. So, if more MLAs are with the BJP, they can elect more Rajya Sabha MPs and they can change the Constitution by securing a majority in the Rajya Sabha. The people are aware of all this. And, Rahul Gandhi’s ‘Samvidhan Sammelans’ have given the right direction to all sections of the people, particularly Dalits and the backwards (OBCs).

But, are such issues relevant in a state election?

There is some relevance. There are also so many state issues. Agrarian unrest, unemployment, price rise, and backwardness of certain regions as well as severe damage to onion, soybean, and cotton farmers caused by the Cemtre’s import-export policy. The other major issue is Gujarat taking away all the major projects and investments from Maharashtra.

Why didn’t the Congress or the MVA ally with Prakash Ambedkar’s VBA? Won’t his party pose problems for the alliance?

Prakash Ambedkar is a B Team of the BJP. In the Lok Sabha elections, we tried (to have an understanding with him). I spoke to him several times. But he did not side with us. He is always helping the BJP and the people know that. That is why he could not get any seats. The presence of Mallikarjun Kharge (who can speak fluent Marathi) in Maharashtra is also helping us unite Dalits behind the MVA.

The Congress criticised the Enkath Shinde government when it announced the Ladki Bahin Yojana, arguing it could pose a strain on the budget. Now, the MVA has promised several sops. Where will you find the resources?

GDP growth has come down because of this government. Regarding the guarantees, we had done an extensive study, on public finance and the fiscal situation of Maharashtra. We have made a plan to raise more revenues through various sources and we will certainly find the resources. We have a clear plan for implementing these programmes.

The Congress and the BJP are locked in a direct contest in 72 seats, 36 of them in Vidarbha alone. What is your strategy to take on the BJP?

The fight is between the Congress and the BJP in Vidarbha and Marathwada. We are going to win there in a big way. We have a plan. Farmers’ issue is the most important thing in both regions. Cotton, onion, and soybean farmers are in distress. The largest number of farmer suicides happened in these areas. The Centre did not take care of this aspect. The Centre’s import-export policy has damaged Maharashtra farmers in a big way. So, they will never forget this. Vidarbha has been a Congress bastion for long. It became clear in the Lok Sabha elections as well. We feel that we will perform well in these areas.

Why is the Congress not keen on the MVA projecting a CM face?

The Congress never announces a CM candidate. We will not do that even if the Congress is fighting the election alone. After the elections, we will sit down and we will elect the leader.

The Shiv Sena (UBT) is said to be keen about the alliance projecting Uddhav Thackeray as the CM face now.

We have spoken to them and told them that this is our strategy. Everybody agreed.

If the MVA wins, will the next CM be from the party that has the largest number of seats?

That we will decide only after the elections.

There is much heartburn in the Mumbai Congress. The party is contesting in only 11 of the 36 seats.

It happens. When we are in an alliance, you take more seats in areas where you are strong, your alliance partner will take more seats in areas where they are strong. In Vidarbha, the Shiv Sena (UBT) got only 9 seats. It happens. We would like to have a harmonious situation among the coalition partners. Look at the Mahayuti. The BJP is giving seats to Eknath Shinde’s party and also candidates. They have forced the Shinde party to field BJP leaders as candidates on its symbol. This has never happened in the coalition system in India. You are giving seats as well as candidates. The BJP is swallowing up its partners.

Were you surprised that Sharad Pawar managed to get 87 seats for his party, punching above its weight?

We wanted to have a harmonious situation in the coalition. We did not want unnecessary problems. We wanted unity among the partners so that the alliance looked credible. The BJP, on the other hand, has almost finished off Ajit Pawar and Shinde. It is keeping them around only for now and will get rid of them after the elections. Union Home Minister Amit Shah has said that the BJP will contest alone in 2029.

How confident are you about the MVA’s chances?

We are very hopeful that the people of Maharashtra will vote for change. Corruption in the state government is the most important narrative now. The people of Maharashtra have rejected the BJP’s machinations of splitting parties and pulling down a government. They feel whatever the BJP did in Maharashtra in the last five years was unethical and against political morality. The BJP did done the same in Karnataka and the people of that state punished it. Likewise, this government will also be ousted.