Mumbai: Maharashtra Congress President Nana Patole announced on Wednesday that the seat-sharing discussions within the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance for the upcoming state elections are almost finalized. The MVA, which consists of Congress, Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena (UBT), and Sharad Pawar’s Nationalist Congress Party (NCP - SP), is gearing up for the Maharashtra Assembly elections, expected to be held in November.

Patole confirmed that the next meeting of the alliance is scheduled for October 11, reiterating that there is no internal discord within the coalition. “We have completed discussions for all 288 seats in the assembly. There are no disputes among the alliance partners," Patole stated after attending a meeting of MVA leaders at the YB Chavan Centre in Mumbai.

He took the opportunity to criticize the ruling Mahayuti alliance, which includes the BJP, Shiv Sena (Shinde faction), and a section of the NCP. “We are focused on freeing the state from the current corrupt, anti-Maharashtra, and anti-farmer government,” Patole said.

Maharashtra Congress leader Balasaheb Thorat echoed Patole's remarks, stating that 50 to 60 seats were still under discussion, with consensus reached on the remaining constituencies. NCP (SP) leader Anil Deshmukh, who is part of the negotiations, also mentioned that about 15 percent of the seats are yet to be finalized by the MVA allies.

When asked about the Chief Minister's position, Patole deferred the decision to the party high command, following Uddhav Thackeray’s statement that he would support any chief ministerial candidate proposed by Congress or NCP. Patole added, “I am not aware of what Uddhav Thackeray said, but the decision will be made by our leadership.”

As the MVA moves closer to completing seat-sharing agreements, the alliance is set to intensify its campaign strategy to challenge the ruling Mahayuti in the upcoming elections.