MUMBAI: Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray on Friday said he had asked Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis to finalise Sena’s list of nominees, but later sought to play down the worries over little progress in seat-sharing talks with ally Bharatiya Janata Party for the forthcoming state polls.
While Fadnavis and Thackeray have time and again scotched speculations of cracks in the saffron alliance, seat-sharing talks have yet to rival or dwarf the speed at which the allies have been raiding Opposition citadels to poach leaders.
Asked if the seat talks with the BJP are on track, the Sena chief said, “I’m waiting for the chief minister to draw up a list of Shiv Sena candidates and the seats we should contest. We’ll then put that list before our party members and decide on the way forward.”
He later clarified that the sea- sharing talks are at the final stage and the formal announcement of the alliance would be made at an appropriate time.
A senior Sena leader sought to explain Thackeray’s comment saying he responded with his trademark sarcasm when bombarded with questions on seat talks during the formal induction of former NCP minister Bhaskar Jadhav into the Sena fold at Matoshree.
The Sena chief had cleared the air on the alliance earlier this week, as he shared the dais with Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the launch of three new Metro lines in Mumbai. However, the two parties have yet to arrive at a consensus on a seat deal.
There are speculations that various formulae are being tried to lock mutually-agreeable seat deal at the earliest. It is also being speculated that the allies could exchange a few seats that they presently hold.