6 months ago
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The Congress successful Maharashtra appeared divided connected allying with the MNS successful the upcoming section assemblage polls, with elder person of the expansive aged enactment Vijay Wadettiwar favouring a agreed contest, portion MP Varsha Gaikwad said it was steadfast connected not aligning with the Raj Thackeray-led enactment successful Mumbai.
Mr. Wadettiwar, however, suggested that the Congress wouldn't compromise connected its ideology for forging alliances.
He referred to NCP (SP) main Sharad Pawar's connection underlining the value of Opposition unity for defeating the BJP.
"Ultimately, ideology matters. We are affirmative towards a agreed fight, including Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS). Everyone indispensable travel unneurotic to decision the BJP," the Congress Legislature Party person told reporters connected Saturday (November 22, 2025).
He referred to the MNS's information successful the 'Satyacha Morcha' organised by the absorption MVA successful Mumbai earlier this period against the alleged discrepancies successful the voters' list.
Mr. Wadettiwar's unfastened enactment for MNS flies successful the look of the Mumbai Congress unit, which had announced to spell solo successful the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) polls.
Reacting to Mr. Wadettiwar's remarks, Mumbai Congress main Varsha Gaikwad said helium spoke astir alliances astatine the State level, portion the party's Mumbai portion has already made its basal wide that it volition not align with the MNS for the BMC polls.
She had earlier said that the Congress volition ne'er tie-up with those radical who instrumentality the instrumentality into their hands and intimidate others.
Elections to the 246 municipal councils and 42 nagar panchayats successful the authorities volition beryllium held connected December 2, portion the civic corp polls are expected to instrumentality spot successful January 2026.
State Congress main Harshwardhan Sapkal has reiterated that the enactment would ne'er articulation hands with "those who indulge successful violence".
The increasing proximity betwixt Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT), a subordinate of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), and MNS headed by his relative Raj Thackeray, had seemingly shaped the Congress's determination to contention elections independently.
Mr. Wadettiwar, meanwhile, claimed that the BJP's interior surveys predicting important gains for the enactment successful the upcoming Mumbai civic polls were "fabricated".
"It is simply a fictional communicative created by the BJP. This is simply a hopeless effort to power nationalist perception. Many caller elector individuality cards mysteriously appeared successful Mumbai yesterday; possibly the BJP wants to repetition what they did successful Bihar. They privation to extremity democracy," helium alleged.
Senior BJP person and Maharashtra Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule criticised the Congress for what helium described arsenic its "politically convenient" displacement successful basal implicit aligning with the MNS.
Mr. Bawankule said the Congress had earlier firmly opposed immoderate confederation with the MNS owed to the latter's assertive agitations against Hindi-speaking people.
"The enactment enactment had adopted that stance, fearing a backlash from voters successful the precocious held Bihar assembly elections. Now the Congress is changing its basal for its ain convenience up of civic polls successful Maharashtra," helium alleged.
Meanwhile, reacting to MNS person Sandeep Deshpande calling Congress an amoeba, Congress spokesperson Sachin Sawant said, "Science tells however an amoeba holds its ground. And authorities tells however immoderate alteration colours." "Rather than changing colours similar a chameleon retired of fearfulness of challenges successful each election, the Congress has the quality to clasp its crushed similar an amoeba, facing each upcoming challenge," she said.
