In a significant political development ahead of the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) elections, the Congress and the Shiv Sena (UBT) have officially announced an electoral alliance. The announcement came on Monday following several rounds of intense negotiations held over the preceding week.
Seat-Sharing Formula Finalized
The core of the agreement is a consensus on 105 out of the PMC's total 165 seats. As per the finalized formula, the Congress party will contest from 60 seats, while the Shiv Sena (UBT) will field its candidates in 45 constituencies. Leaders from both parties confirmed that the distribution of AB forms to candidates began on Monday, coinciding with the start of the nomination process, and is slated for completion by Tuesday, the final day for filing nominations.
Senior leaders Sachin Ahir of the Shiv Sena (UBT) and Satej Patil of the Congress jointly stated that the alliance, along with other like-minded parties, aims to collectively challenge the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the crucial civic polls. Both parties held marathon meetings over the last two days to iron out the details of this pact.
Negotiations Continue with MNS and VBA
Discussions for the remaining seats are actively underway with other political groups. The alliance is in talks with the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) for a potential seat-sharing arrangement. Sachin Ahir clarified that while discussions initially covered 32 seats, the focus has now narrowed to 21 seats, and a resolution is expected by Tuesday.
Simultaneously, the Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA), which is negotiating with the Congress, has reportedly put forward a demand for 40 seats. The finalization of these talks will determine the complete opposition landscape for the PMC elections.
Targeting BJP and Addressing NCP's Exit
The alliance leaders launched a sharp attack on the BJP and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP). They criticized the NCP for sharing power with the BJP at the state level while choosing to contest separately in the Pune civic polls. Regarding the NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar) faction's decision to stay out of the alliance, the leaders placed the onus of explanation on NCP (SP) leaders themselves.
"It was their call to stay or leave the alliance. NCP (SP) leaders should explain why they jumped ship when they were present for the initial meetings with Congress and Sena (UBT) for the PMC polls," remarked Sachin Ahir.
Congress leader Satej Patil framed the BJP's decision to go solo, without its state ally NCP, as a strategic move to deny space to the opposition. "But we will not allow this. We are fighting the civic polls at full strength. Congress and Sena (UBT) have joined hands for Pune which has been deprived of development for the last seven years," Patil asserted.
Sources within both parties highlighted that this marks the first time the Congress and Shiv Sena (UBT) are joining forces for the PMC elections. A senior Congress leader emphasized that the polls will be contested on local issues, citing citizen dissatisfaction with the BJP's tenure in the PMC and the performance of the BJP-led state government, which allegedly led to a slowdown in Pune's development.
