Amid reports that Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena plans to stake claim to 22 out of the total 48 Lok Sabha seats in the state in the next year's general elections, senior BJP leader and minister Sudhir Mungantiwar on Friday said seat-sharing talks between the two ruling allies are yet to be held.
When asked about reports that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which shares power with the Shinde-led Sena in the state, is in no mood to accept the demands of its ally on the Lok Sabha seats, Mungantiwar maintained that no BJP leader has said that Shinde's demands will not be accepted.
Talking to reporters at the Raj Bhavan in Mumbai, the Culture Minister said, "No formula for seat sharing has been decided as yet. No BJP leader has said that Eknath Shinde 's demands will not be accepted. Shinde joined hands with the BJP to provide a government that works to protect the interest of people. His demands would be respected. BJP has high regards for the Shiv Sena earlier led by Balasaheb Thackeray and now Eknath Shinde," he said.
Both Shinde and Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis will sit together and take a decision on the number of seats to be contested for Lok Sabha and Assembly elections, the minister said. Lok Sabha elections are scheduled to be held in April/May in 2024, followed by the state Assembly polls in October/November that year,
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