NCP says no formal alliance with MNS

When asked about the meeting, NCP national spokesperson Nawab Malik said, “Sharad Pawar is the seniormost leader and often we have leaders from various parties coming to meet him to discuss politics. But there is no formal alliance with MNS. The Congress and NCP are in alliance in Maharashtra.”

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A senior MNS leader, on condition of anonymity, said, “The MNS chief feels fielding candidates in Lok Sabha elections without any formidable alliance will not bring electoral dividends. It will be a futile exercise.” NCP leaders said the party was initially keen on having MNS as an ally in the mahagathbandhan but Congress opposed the move. Now, the party wants to support Thackeray as a campaigner in constituencies where it faces the biggest challenge from the Shiv Sena and BJP, they added.

In 2009, the MNS had consolidated its support base across Mumbai, Thane, Nashik and Pune. It had 12 MLAs in the Assembly. However, in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, the party was unable to win a single seat. In Assembly elections the same year, the party won one seat.

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In its last few rallies, the MNS had slammed the Modi government over the Rafale deal and the airstrike against terrorists camps in Pakistan. It had accused the Modi government of raking up anti-Pakistan sentiment to get political mileage.

The BJP has dismissed MNS charges as baseless, with minister Vinod Tawde saying, “I always thought Raj Thackeray had the powers of reasoning and logical thinking. But unfortunately, he is indulging in mindless and baseless charges against Modi government and BJP.”
In an open challenge to MNS, Tawde said, “ He should field candidates and show he can save deposit in at least one seat.”