MVA LS poll seat-sharing deal finalised, announcement soon: Raut

Mumbai, Feb 28 (PTI) Members of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance agreed on a seat-sharing formula in Maharashtra for the coming Lok Sabha elections on Wednesday and it would be announced soon, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut said.

He was talking to reporters after a meeting of the Congress, NCP-Sharadchandra Pawar and Shiv Sena (UBT) here.

Maharashtra has 48 Lok Sabha seats, second highest after Uttar Pradesh (80).

Congress leaders Patole, Prithviraj Chavan, Varsha Gaikwad, NCP (Sharad Pawar faction) leaders Jayant Patil, Jitendra awhad and Anil Deshmukh, and Sena (UBT)'s Sanjay Raut and Vinayak Raut participated in the meeting. A representative of the Prakash Ambedkar-led Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) was also present.

There will be no more meetings to discuss seat-sharing, Raut said.

"Sharad Pawar, Uddhav Thackeray, state Congress president Nana Patole and Prakash Ambedkar will meet to give final approval to the deal and it will be announced at a press conference," the Rajya Sabha member said.

Raut denied reports that VBA had demanded 27 seats.

"They have given a list of seats where they have been working for many years. We will discuss it," he said.

Comprehensive discussion took place on each of the 48 Lok Sabha seats, he said, adding, "Winning is important, not who contests how many seats." "Protection of democracy and the Constitution is our agenda, and Prakash Ambedkar holds the same view," Raut added.

In the 2019 general elections, the BJP had won 23 Lok Sabha seats in the state, its alliance partner Shiv Sena (which was then undivided) had won 18 seats, undivided NCP had won four while Congress and AIMIM had won a seat each. An independent candidate had won one seat. PTI