Shinde Sena likely to stake claim to 22 Lok Sabha seats, BJP in no mood to accept demand

On Wednesday night, Shinde held a meeting of Shiv Sena MPs to review development works and firm up the party’s strategy for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. The MPs and Shinde decided that the party will contest from 22 out of the 48 seats in the Lok Sabha, which the undivided Shiv Sena had contested in the 2019 general elections. Sena MP Rahul Shewale, “There was discussion on the Lok Sabha polls and it was also decided that there will be a joint meeting of the BJP-Shiv Sena and RPI soon to discuss the development works being carried out in all the Lok Sabha constituencies and preparations for the 22 seats on which the Shiv Sena contested the Lok Sabha elections in 2019.”

Of the total 18 Shiv Sena MPs from Maharashtra, 13 have joined the Shinde-led Shiv Sena while the Uddhav Thackeray-led Sena is left with only five MPs. In the 2019 general elections, the BJP-Sena and RPI contested from 48 seats and won 41 seats in Maharashtra. While the Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (then undivided) won 18 seats, the BJP had won 23 seats.

Meanwhile, there was also discussion on the demands of a few MPs that the Shinde-led Sena should have a cabinet berth in the Union government in the next expansion.

A senior BJP leader requesting anonymity, however, said, “The seat-sharing between the BJP and Shiv Sena (Shinde) will be based on ground reality. We don’t see any problems as both Shinde and Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis have good rapport and are determined to contest the polls together.” However, Shinde Sena’s assertion for 22 seats out of 48 Lok Sabha seats is unlikely to be met, he said.