Thane: Thane Shiv Sena MP Naresh Mhaske has said his party will contest the Navi Mumbai civic polls alone if allies choose to part ways.
Navi Mumbai is a stronghold of the BJP, which is part of the Mahayuti alliance comprising the Sena as well as the Ajit Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party.
Civic polls in several cities in Maharashtra, including Mumbai and Thane are pending since early 2022. No dates have been declared for the polls as yet.
Addressing a Sena gathering on Saturday night, Mhaske said, "This election will be contested as Mahayuti and the saffron flag of Shiv Sena will flutter on the NMMC. And if no one is ready to join the Shiv Sena-saffron alliance in the Municipal Corporation, we are all ready to hoist it independently."
Without naming the BJP, he said the Sena was committed to fighting the polls in alliance but added that "if you prefer to contest separately, then do not take my corporators for granted as we are your equals".
Incidentally, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, on May 15, said his government will try to conduct civic elections on time and reiterated that the Mahayuti alliance will contest the polls together.
Speaking to reporters in Pune, Fadnavis had said the ruling BJP, NCP and Shiv Sena will fight jointly wherever possible.
Where a seat-sharing arrangement is not feasible, the constituents may contest independently, he had added.
The CM also stressed the Mahayuti partners will refrain from criticising one another during the campaigning.
The Supreme Court on May 6 paved the way for Maharashtra local body polls, stalled for more than five years due to the OBC reservation issue, as it ordered the state election panel to notify it in four weeks.
(Except for the headline, this article has not been edited by FPJ's editorial team and is auto-generated from an agency feed.)
