Mumbai: Shiv Sena spokesperson Sanjay Raut on Tuesday termed the seat-sharing deal with the Bharatiya Janata as a ‘tougher task’ than the partition of India.
Speaking to a news agency, Mr Raut said, “Itna bada Maharashtra hai, ye jo 288 seats ka bantwara hai ye Bharat-Pakistan ke bantware se bhi bhayankar hai. (Maharashtra is so huge. The division of 288 seats is more difficult than the partition of India and Pakistan).”
His remarks come at a time when the BJP is planning to keep less than 50 per cent of the seats for its three-decade-old ally. The Sena has repeatedly been pushing for a 50-50 seat sharing deal with its saffron ally, arguing that the formula was finalised before the Lok Sabha election this year.
Moreover, Mr Raut, a Rajya Sabha MP, asked the BJP to introspect if it cannot honour its commitment. “The seat-sharing formula for the Assembly elections was decided before the LS polls...If the BJP is not true to its commitment and word given, then it needs introspection,” he said.
Calling Maharashtra the land of warrior king Shivaji Maharaj, the Sena leader reminded the BJP leadership to hold on to its commitment towards the alliance.
“We have worked with (BJP leaders) Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Pramod Mahajan, L.K. Advani. They always honoured their commitments," the Sena leader added.
The Sena leader also said that had his party chosen to occupy the Opposition benches, the picture today would have been different.
However, when asked whether his party would have an alliance with the BJP in the upcoming polls, the Rajya Sabha member said that his party has always adopted a “positive approach”.
Reacting to Mr Raut’s comments, BJP national general secretary in charge of Maharashtra, Saroj Pandey, said that the Sena leader should raise the seat-sharing issue within his party and not in the public domain.
“I will not make any comment on his statement,” Ms Pandey said. The seat sharing discussion is going on in last stage and it would be announced soon, she added.
Maharashtra goes to polls on October 21, along with Haryana, while the votes would be counted on October 24. The term of the outgoing Assembly ends on November 8.
