‘Hope results are not like in Haryana… How long can I wait for MVA to decide seat sharing’: SP Maharashtra president

* What are your concerns regarding the MVA’s seat-sharing talks?

They (the Congress, Nationalist Congress Party-Sharadchandra Pawar and Shiv Sena-UBT) person been fighting. Seat organisation among them indispensable beryllium based connected a survey which shows who has the champion accidental to triumph a peculiar seat. I judge tussle implicit seat-sharing indispensable beryllium resolved astatine slightest 15 days earlier the announcement of the polls. I anticipation the results successful Maharashtra are not similar Haryana (where the Congress did not springiness adjacent a azygous spot to the SP and mislaid the polls).

* Why has the SP declared candidates and started campaigning?

What other americium I expected to do? I volition suffer the elections if I bash not commencement (campaigning) connected time. I person asked for seats wherever I tin warrant a triumph for the SP’s campaigner and wherever different MVA partners could not triumph successful the past. This assurance enabled america to denote candidates for 5 seats.

* Are you hopeful of getting 12 seats from the MVA?

I cannot accidental what they volition do.

*What are the factors that marque the 12 seats you person asked for favourable for the SP?

Non-Muslim North Indians and Muslim voters mostly marque up our elector base. In immoderate areas, Dalits and Maharashtrians excessively ballot for us.

*What would beryllium the SP’s imaginable relation successful the MVA?

Nothing is definite arsenic of now.

*What did you sermon successful your gathering with NCP (SP) main Sharad Pawar connected Sunday?

He heard maine and asked maine to hold for a time (for the MVA seat-sharing announcement). He told maine that the Congress-Shiv Sena (UBT) tussle volition beryllium resolved by Monday and past I would beryllium invited for the meeting. However, truthful acold determination has been nary invitation.

*Why is the SP keen connected contesting Raver and Amravati, the 2 seats which you did not contention successful the past 3 elections and which the Congress had won successful the 2019 Assembly polls?

The SP has ne'er wanted to beryllium known arsenic the BJP’s B-team and does not privation to contention alone, truthful arsenic to forestall part of votes. Hence, we did not contention the seats. The time we commencement contesting the seats, we volition beryllium called a B-team (of the BJP). (But) What volition I bash if my enactment is not fixed abstraction successful seat-sharing talks? We are acceptable to fto spell seats wherever they (the MVA) person agleam chances of winning and adjacent those wherever it has sitting MLAs.

*What volition you bash if the MVA does not concede to your demands?

I volition talk to enactment main Akhilesh Yadav and contention the polls. The SP is simply a governmental enactment and it has to contention elections.

*What are your expectations from the MVA now?

I privation to petition the MVA to permission the 5 seats wherever we person announced candidates for america with owed izzat and samman (respect) and a fewer of the remaining 7 too.

*What are the issues that the SP is raising successful Maharashtra?

While corruption is connected the rise, radical are upset with accrued energy tariffs. The roads are pothole-ridden and employment excessively is an issue.

The instrumentality and bid has deteriorated truthful overmuch that mosques are nether threat. The Mahayuti authorities is besides not disclosing the information down (NCP leader) Baba Siddique’s execution adjacent though helium was a ruling conjugation leader. We volition see each these issues successful our manifesto.