Barely weeks for the municipal elections in Maharashtra and back-channel communication between the Congress and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) has intensified to explore a possible alliance, signalling a renewed attempt to consolidate the opposition vote against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Patil later confirmed that the communication has been initiated within his party though he refrained from sharing details, saying discussions were at a preliminary stage. (HT)
NCP leader Ajit Pawar, according to sources, reached out to Congress leader Satej Patil who is the party in-charge for Pune district for a possible alliance in the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) polls late on Sunday. Patil later confirmed that the communication has been initiated within his party though he refrained from sharing details, saying discussions were at a preliminary stage.
The outreach comes close on the heels of a proposal floated by the Congress last week in Pimpri-Chinchwad, where it sought from the NCP an alliance with a 20-seat understanding for the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC). The proposal is being seen as part of a broader Congress push to bring the Ajit Pawar-led NCP into the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) fold for the civic polls.
Congress leaders privately admitted that the party’s limited organisational strength in urban Maharashtra, particularly in Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad, has made an alliance imperative. A split opposition, they fear, would only help the BJP retain control over key civic bodies. Bringing the NCP on board, even Ajit Pawar’s faction, is being viewed as a pragmatic move to consolidate anti-BJP votes and remain electorally relevant at the grassroots’ level.
Congress Pune city president Arvind Shinde said that Satej Patil has spoken to local leaders to seek their views. “As a party, we are positive about joining hands with Ajit Pawar as long as the fight is against the BJP. However, any alliance under the MVA banner must ensure equitable seat-sharing among all constituents,” Shinde said.
From the NCP side, Pune city president Sunil Tingre reiterated that efforts are underway to bring together both the NCP factions as well as the MVA partners for the civic elections. “In Pune, the main contest is between the BJP and NCP. Our focus is to avoid division of votes and fight the BJP unitedly,” Tingre said.
The renewed talks have also been triggered by Sunday’s results for the first round of local body polls where Congress’s performance in western Maharashtra has been lacklustre while NCP has managed to retain its grip over semi-rural areas of Pune district. At the same time, NCP has been unhappy over the BJP accommodating leaders from rival parties at the local level.
Ajit Pawar has publicly expressed his displeasure, stating that while the Mahayuti partners have agreed not to poach each other’s leaders, the BJP’s actions have forced the NCP to reconsider its restraint. He said that leaders denied tickets by the BJP are already approaching the NCP.
Meanwhile, the possibility of an NCP led by MVA constituents such as the Congress and NCP (SP) aligning with the NCP has not gone unchallenged in the NCP (SP).
Former NCP (SP) Pune president Prashant Jagtap has voiced strong reservations, arguing that aligning with Ajit Pawar would confuse cadres and weaken the party’s ideological position, particularly when the party has consistently attacked the BJP–Ajit Pawar alliance at the state level. His objections reflect a wider unease within a section of Congress workers who fear erosion of the party’s independent identity in urban politics.
NCP (SP) leader Supriya Sule is in Pune on Tuesday. With parallel discussions underway on reuniting the two NCP factions for civic polls, Sule is expected to hold meetings with party workers and local leaders to assess the mood on the ground.
Former Pune mayor Datta Dhankawade claimed that the process of bringing together both NCP factions is nearly complete. “Only a formal announcement remains. Once that happens, we are confident of putting up a strong fight in the PMC elections,” he said.
