"People Create Dispute...": Maharashtra Congress Chief On Ally Rift Buzz

Maharashtra Congress chief Nana Patole today said that he was "friends" with Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut amid reports of tension between the two allies.

"I am friends with Sanjay Raut. I don't understand why people create disputes between us," said Mr Patole at NDTV Marathi's Jahirnama event.

Terse remarks by Mr Patole and Mr Raut amid the delay in the seat-sharing announcement for the upcoming assembly elections in Maharashtra triggered the rift buzz.

To a veiled swipe of Sanjay Raut where he said the Congress leaders are "not capable of taking decisions", Mr Patole shot back, "If Sanjay Raut is controlling Uddhav Thackeray, that is their issue. We have the responsibility of telling the reality of our leaders and we are doing that. We do not want to speak anything on what Sanjay Raut does."

Other Congress leaders, however, played down the statements insisting that talks were going smoothly.

During the event, Mr Patole also addressed the impasse between the opposition alliance in Maharashtra - Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) - over some seats.

"Congress is a national party, and national parties have to handle things carefully. Regional parties have their demands and dreams of growth, which is acceptable. Congress played a crucial role in allocating seats based on merit, aiming for a majority government in Maharashtra. We are still working towards it," he said.

"Discussions for 5-10 seats are still pending, and we'll resolve this issue. After October 30, we'll gather again to find a solution. We have decided to contest elections as MVA. No conflicts arose during seat allocation. Efforts are continuing to resolve pending seat allocation issues," he added.

The 61-year-old had earlier revealed its seat-sharing arrangement for 255 of 288 constituencies in Maharashtra. He said that each alliance partner - Congress, Shiv Sena (UBT), and Nationalist Congress Party (Sharad Pawar) - will be contesting 85 seats each.

When he was asked by the chief minister face of the opposition alliance, he said, "As per Rahul Gandhi's vision, the priority is to save Maharashtra first. Once we do that, the MVA leaders will decide on the Chief Minister."

Earlier, speaking at NDTV Marathi's Election Conclave, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis took a dig at the opposition, and said, "Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) is not announcing Chief Minister face as they don't think their Chief Minister can come after elections."

The ruling alliance, however, has also not named its chief minister face yet.

Mr Fadnavis said that the ruling Mahayuti does not need to announce the candidate for the chief ministerial post, as Eknath Shinde is the incumbent Chief Minister: "Who will become Chief Minister is announced after the elections. We are three major parties, CM Eknath Shinde is chief of Shiv Sena, Ajit Pawar is chief of NCP and our (BJP) Parliamentary board will decide who will be the Chief Minister of Maharashtra. But we are not worried because we have our Chief Minister, Eknath Shinde who is leading our government."

Maharashtra will vote on November 20 and the results will be declared on November 23.

The BJP won 105 seats, the Shiv Sena won 56, and the Congress secured 44 seats in the 2019 Maharashtra elections. In 2014, the BJP won 122 seats, while the Shiv Sena won 63 and the Congress 42.