Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: Shiv Sena (UBT) on Wednesday announced former legislative council leader of opposition Ambadas Danve as its candidate for the upcoming MLC elections, a move that has triggered fresh political churn within the Maha Vikas Aghadi amid ongoing seat-sharing talks.
The announcement was made by Sena (UBT) MLA Aaditya Thackeray, shortly after which Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut declared on social media platform X that Danve would be the MVA's official candidate. Elections to 10 MLC seats are due soon, and the candidature emerged after hectic discussions among MVA partners — Shiv Sena (UBT), Congress and NCP (SP). The last date of filing of nominations is April 30.
However, within hours, Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee chief Harshvardhan Sapkal said Congress would field its own nominee, signalling possible cracks in opposition unity. Congress functionaries said they had assured support only to Uddhav Thackeray's candidature and not to any other name.
Danve, 55, is a close confidant of the Thackeray family and remained loyal to Uddhav Thackeray after the Shiv Sena split. He has consistently targeted the Eknath Shinde-led Sena and BJP. Danve began his political career as a district vice-president in 1998, later serving as a corporator and district president. He was elected to the legislative council in 2019 and became leader of the opposition in 2022, a post he held until his term ended in 2025. Since 2021, he has also been a director of the Sambhajinagar District Central Cooperative Bank.
The announcement surprised sections within MVA, as some politicians had been advocating that Uddhav Thackeray himself should contest the MLC polls or that the seat be allocated to Congress.
NCP (SP) state president Shashikant Shinde said his party would respect Sena (UBT)'s decision, adding that an unopposed election would be preferable.
Congress politicians reiterated the need for consensus. Party spokesperson Atul Londhe said discussions had included either Uddhav Thackeray contesting or the seat going to Congress, while national secretary Sachin Sawant noted that Rajya Sabha and MLC candidates are usually decided jointly. Senior functionary Manikrao Thackeray warned that unilateral decisions in a three-party alliance could create complications.
The development has added uncertainty to the MLC poll dynamics, with questions remaining over whether the MVA will settle on a consensus candidate or face a friendly contest among alliance partners.
A Congress politician said the party was "ditched" by Sena (UBT) that kept Uddhav's decision "secret until the last minute," leaving Congress just a day to decide its candidate.
Among Congress netas whose names could be discussed for the seat are ex-ministers Bala Thorat, Naseem Khan and Yashomati Thakur, party spokesperson Sachin Sawant and ex-CM Prithiviraj Chavan, party sources said. A party insider said they are also discussing if a Muslim face can be nominated.
The other partner in MVA, NCP (SP), has backed Danve. State NCP (SP) president Shashikant Shinde said, "Thackeray's Sena supported Sharad Pawar for the (recent) Rajya Sabha polls. At that time, NCP (SP) had suggested Uddhav Thackeray's name for council. But it is their decision whom to nominate. If they nominate Danve, we will discuss with our seniors, but I don't think our position will change."
The BJP has nominated six names to contest, while the other seats will be shared between Mahayuti partners NCP and Shiv Sena.
The NCP is yet to declare its candidate for the MLC polls, indicating lack of consensus on the name within the top leadership. A meeting of the party's core committee on Wednesday did not yield a result. The frontrunners include Vikram Kakade, a close aide of Parth Pawar, former NCP MLA Zeeshan Siddique, ex-MLA Rajendra Jain and former Dharashiv district president Suresh Birajdar.
