On Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA)’s chief ministerial face for upcoming Assembly elections in Maharashtra, NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar objected the idea of projecting one particular individual. This comes at a time when Shiv Sena (UBT) insists that party chief Uddhav Thackeray should be announced as the next CM face
“Our alliance is our collective face. One individual cannot become our chief ministerial face. Collective leadership is our formula,” Pawar said and further added, “All our three alliance partners will take a decision in this regard”
He also said all who opposed Prime Minister Narendra Modi should come together to fight as one and join MVA.
“During the recent Lok Sabha elections, the PWP (Peasants and Workers Party of India), AAP and Communist parties helped us. Though we are three partners in the MVA, we should include all these parties. All those opposed to Modi should become part of the MVA. Whatever decision has to be taken regarding the chief ministerial face, will be taken through discussion and after taking everyone into confidence.”
Important to have a CM face: Sanjay Raut
Meanwhile, Sanjay Raut on Saturday pointed out that how important it is to have one individual to be the frontrunner for elections.
Raut cited the INDIA bloc’s performance and the absence of the prime ministerial face to drive home his point. “If the INDIA bloc had projected Rahul Gandhi as the prime ministerial face, we would have got 25-30 more seats… People should know who they are voting for. People voted for Indira Gandhi and Narendra Modi. They want to know the face. We don’t have differences over who should be our chief ministerial face. We are determined to fight the elections unitedly. We will win 175 to 180 Assembly seats,” he said.
“Going to the elections in Maharashtra without a chief ministerial face will be dangerous for the MVA. Maharashtra has seen the way Uddhav Thackeray handled the state, especially during the crucial Covid-19 period. People voted for the MVA due to the popularity of Uddhav Thackeray… A faceless alliance will not help our cause of winning the election,”