The ruling Congress and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) are close to strike an alliance for the crucial election to the BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation in a bid to end the saffron Shiv Sena-BJP alliance rule. Congress and NCP are also forced to seriously consider the alliance, despite opposition from within, especially when the Republican Party of India (Athavale) representing a crucial dalit community has joined hands with Sena-BJP combine in the coming elections slated for February-March next year.
Further, the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) led by Raj Thackeray, estranged nephew of Sena chief Bal Thackeray, has already announced his party's decision to contest all 227 seats on the Mumbai civic body. Of the 227 seats, Congress, which has won 17 Assembly seats in 2009 elections, may contest 162 seats leaving 65 seats to NCP.
A final decision on the electoral pact is expected at the meeting on Wednesday evening slated between the Congress team led by the chief minister Prithviraj Chavan and NCP group chaired by the deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar. Already a first round of talks between the state party unit presidents of both the Congress and NCP held last week and ended on a positive note that the alliance was the need of the hour to unseat the Shiv Sena and its alliance partners from India's richest civic body with an annual budget of Rs 22,000 crore.
Congress minister, who did not want to be identified, told Business Standard "Both the parties are quite serious on facing the ensuing elections together as they know that going solo will benefit the Shiv Sena-BJP-RPI alliance. Congress and NCP, if joined by the Samajwadi Party can be strong enough to take on Shiv Sena-BJP-RPI combine. Besides, MNS will eat into the Sena's votes which will be helpful for Congress-NCP." The minister however, clarified that the selection of candidates especially would be quite crucial to take on the Shiv Sena-BJP- RPI." The minister recalled that Shiv Sena-BKP alliance retained their supremacy after the 2007 elections as they benefited due to division of votes in the wake of lack of alliance between Congress and NCP.
NCP state party president Madhukar Pichad was quite bullish over his party's alliance with the Congress. "Our party president Sharad Pawar during the recent party meeting had said the Congress party can take its decision on forging alliance with NCP within 15 days. This was never an ultimatum but arrive at a decision so that necessary preparations will go into fighting the ensuing elections. Congress has shown desire to strike an alliance. Wednesday's meeting is quite crucial in this regard," he noted.
Leaders from Congress and NCP believe that Shiv Sena-BJP may not succeed to lure enmass voters from the dalit especially Nav Boudh despite alliance with RPI's faction led by former MP Ramdas Athavale. "Hindu dalits, who have been traditional supporters of Shiv Sena in particular, are also agitated over Sena's move to leave them in lurch and woo Athavale led RPI. If Congress and NCP play cards well we will be able to encash the disgruntlement within the Hindu dalits and also Nav Boudh," Congress minister noted.