The BJP will win both the Lok Sabha and Maharashtra Assembly polls scheduled this year due to its "structure and organisational strength", the party's state chief and Jalna MP Raosaheb Danve said Monday.
Danve, who was in Kolhapur after completing a tour of 36 parliamentary seats in the state, also downplayed the continual verbal duels between his party and ally Shiv Sena.
Brushing aside the impact of alliances being formed against the BJP, Danve said, "BJP will succeed in upcoming state and Parliament elections because of its structure and organisational strength."
On the routine war of words between the Sena and BJP leadership in the state, he said his party still wanted like-minded groups to come together for the forthcoming polls.
"The BJP wants like-minded parties to come together. But if that does not happen, then we will fight in all the seats in Maharashtra and win," he claimed.
The latest war of words between the bickering saffron allies occurred after BJP chief Amit Shah recently said if an alliance happened, the BJP will ensure victory for its allies, but if it did not, the party will thrash its former allies in the coming Lok Sabha polls.
Without naming anyone, Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray, at a public meet on Sunday in Mumbai, said, "I have heard words like 'patak denge' from someone. One who will trounce the Shiv Sena is yet to be born."
On another query about Maharashtra minister and Shiv Sena MLA from Jalna, Arjun Khotkar, being a likely candidate against him, Danve said he would be fighting Lok Sabha and not Assembly polls.
He, however, added, "If Khotkar tries to oppose me (in LS polls), then I will defeat him."
He refused to speculate on the BJP's LS candidates from Kolhapur, Hatkanangale, Satara and Sangli seats and asked media to wait till March when he claimed the LS poll notification is expected to be issued.
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