Mumbai, September 20: The Konkan region is once again in the spotlight in Maharashtra. With the crucial seat of Guhagar — which the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has won for decades — now being handed over to the Shiv Sena for the October 13 Assembly elections, the stage is set for a rebellion of sorts.
The alliance on Saturday announced seat-sharing. BJP general secretary and MP Gopinath Munde told journalists that the party would contest 119 seats, while the Shiv Sena would get 169. BJP sources clarified that in 2004, the party gave ticket to three Independents from the Shetkari Sanghatana, and it contested 116 seats. The Sena contested 169 seats, including in constituencies where it accommodated some Congress rebels and Independents.
Mr. Munde confirmed that Guhagar was allotted to the Sena. Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly Ramdas Kadam will be the Sena’s candidate from Guhagar. Mr. Kadam was without a constituency, as Khed in the Konkan has been merged with the reconstituted Guhagar and Dapoli.
Mr. Munde said the talks were cordial. This time, everything from campaigning to releasing the manifesto would be done jointly by the two parties. Mr. Munde and Sena executive president Uddhav Thackeray said there was no fight over Guhagar, and it was a question of “winnability.” He admitted that people were upset at Guhagar going to the Sena, but the issue would be sorted out.
The BJP has been given the prestigious Malabar Hill, on which the Sena made a claim.
Dr. Vinay Natu, sitting MLA who has won four times from Guhagar, is perturbed. This seat had been held by his father Shridhar Natu of the Bharatiya Jan Sangh since 1972. Party workers have raised the banner of revolt. Dr. Natu told The Hindu that he would meet workers and take a decision on contesting as Independent.
Initially, the party had asked the Sena to accommodate Mr. Kadam in some other constituency in Mumbai, but he was unwilling to contest from there. The Sena is also unwilling to shift its sitting MLA from Dapoli, Suryakant Dalvi, to make way for Mr. Kadam. However, midweek a senior BJP leader proposed that the Sena be given Guhagar in lieu of Ghatkopar West and some other seats. On Friday, BJP and Sena leaders met Sena chief Bal Thackeray, who asked them to wrap up the talks and announce the alliance on Saturday morning.
However, party sources indicated unhappiness over the decision, which may affect the outcome in Ratnagiri district, which has five seats after delimitation.
The Sena is contesting Dapoli, Guhagar, Chiplun-Sangameshwar and Rajapur in the district, while the BJP has been given Ratnagiri.
In 2004, Sena rebel Bhaskar Jadhav, who was denied ticket, contested from Chiplun. The seat was won by the Nationalist Congress Party, because of division of votes between Mr. Jadhav and the Sena candidate. This time too, it is a saffron alliance partner which has made a tactical mistake.
Of the six seats in Ratnagiri in 2004, the BJP-Sena combine won four, while the NCP got two. The Konkan was a Sena bastion. In the neighbouring district of Sindhudurg too, the Sena-BJP combine held sway till Narayan Rane’s rebellion.
The Sena is contesting 23 seats in Mumbai, while the BJP will contest 13.
Mr. Thackeray said his father would not campaign, as there was no need, but he would definitely address the victory rally.
The late BJP leader Pramod Mahajan’s daughter Poonam Mahajan would contest on BJP ticket from Ghatkopar West, says party leader Ananth Kumar.
–Agencies