Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Eknath Khadse on Sunday said that his party would appreciate allies Shiv Sena to make the offer of seat-sharing for the upcoming Maharashtra Assembly elections face to face rather than on national television.
Speaking at a press conference here, Khadse said, "We wanted the Shiv Sena to make offers to us face to face, not via the TV. A solution can amicably be reached. It is not like we are enemies; we have been allies for 25 years."
Khadse further said that the BJP would want to contest on at least 130 seats.
"We have made an offer for 135 seats but could also settle for 130 seats. In the last elections, we contested from 119 seats and won 46 seats. The Shiv Sena on the other hand contested from 169 seats and won 45. Thus, our winning percentage is much higher," said Khadse.
"The seats which haven't been won by the Shiv Sena in 25 years should be redistributed," he added.
Rejecting the notion of contesting from only 119 seats, Khadse said, "We fought from 119 seats last year as well. What is so new about this?"
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Speaking about the Shiv Sena's final offer, another BJP leader Vinod Tawde said that such discussions should be made face to face and not through the media.
"The final formula that we want to present to the Shiv Sena, we will give in person. These things should not be discussed through the media. Such decisions are made face to face," said Tawde.
"We have always worked to save the alliance. The BJP has sacrificed but the Shiv Sena does not compromise on their front," he added.
Earlier today, the Shiv Sena offered 119 seats to the BJP with party chief Uddhav Thackeray admitting that there was a tug of war over the distribution of seats and termed the row as extremely 'unfortunate'.
Meanwhile, the BJP Central Election Committee is expected to meet in New Delhi this evening to decide on the Shiv Sena's final proposal.
September 27 is the deadline for filing of nominations for the Maharashtra Assembly polls, which is scheduled to be held on October 15. There are 288 seats in the state.