WITH 85 SEATS AND A FEW MORE FOR ITS SMALLER ALLIES, THE NCP (SP) HAS BAGGED A CHUNK OF THE PIE
Mumbai: The leader must get the best of the pie. And that’s exactly what Sharad Pawar has managed to get for his party. As the bitterly fought seat sharing talks come to a close, it is clear that the NCP (SP) has walked away with the best deal. Amidst hard negotiations, the three parties have agreed to a seat quota of 85 constituencies for each with another 15 being re-negotiated. The NCP (SP) seems to have cornered constituencies that are crucial for its consolidation and growth. The party, using its top boss’ contacts and friendships across politicians and parties, has roped in local strongmen particularly from western Maharashtra and Marathwada, it’s focus areas, leaving regions such as Vidarbha and Mumbai and Thane to the other constituents.
Party members were expecting around 75 to a maximum of 80 seats going by the strength of the parties and the winnability factor of the candidates. But Pawar has managed to rope in key leaders and regional strongmen, boosting his party’s chances at winning. The influx of leaders from the BJP and Ajit Pawar’s faction of the NCP from western Maharashtra and Nanded and Beed put the NCP (SP) in a higher position than its allies. Whether its Harshvardhan Patil, Laxman Dhoble or the influential Ghatge, Mohite-Patil and Naik-Nimbalkar families, these political leaders have upped the various candidates winnability. “It’s all about who can get the maximum turnout and we now stand a good chance given that our existing leaders and the new ones who have joined, all wield considerable clout in their respective regions,” says an NCP (SP) member.
This turnaround comes a year after the NCP was split by Ajit Pawar who walked away with legislators and party workers. Despite having lost the symbol and party name, the NCP (SP) aced the Lok Sabha elections with a strike rate of 80 percent. Now, three months later, the party has managed to snatch the best deal in the seat sharing arrangement within the MVA with the Congress getting the hardest hit. “We negotiated hard but gave in in the interests of the alliance staying intact. However, it’s not yet done; we will bargain for more seats in Vidarbha and Mumbai but our competitor here is Uddhav Thackeray and not Sharad Pawar,” says a Congress leader.
The seats secured by the NCP (SP) are crucial for the party which sees the sugar and milk belt of western Maharashtra as its bastion from the early days of Pawar’s political career. The seats set aside for the MVA’s alliance partners, too, are a result of Pawar’s good relations with these allies. Making the most of an adverse situation is a lesson that can be well learnt from Pawar. Even as the MVA formed the government in 2019, the undivided NCP bagged the maximum number and the most influential portfolios in the cabinet.
The NCP had taken 12 cabinet positions with portfolios linked to rural politics such as water resources, cooperation and rural development, apart from the key home and finance departments. Even now, the ‘architect’ of the MVA has managed to get a chunk of the pie for his party.
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