NCP plans to field 40-45 candidates in Karnataka elections

Pawar has summoned a meeting of party leaders in Mumbai to finalise its plans for the Assembly elections in Karnataka scheduled for May 10

The Sharad Pawar-led NCP is planning to try its luck in 40-45 seats in the upcoming Karnataka Assembly elections as part of a strategy to shore up its numbers to regain its national party status in the near future.

Pawar would be meeting party leaders in Mumbai on Saturday to chalk down plans for the May 10 Assembly elections where he hopes to garner substantial numbers of votes and seats to get state party status.

The NCP's announcement about its plans came a day after Pawar met Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and former party chief Rahul Gandhi to strategise on how to forge a stronger Opposition unity to take on the Narendra Modi government in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

Also Read | Sharad Pawar meets Mallikarjun Kharge & Rahul Gandhi in an effort to forge unity within Opposition

In Karnataka, the ruling BJP is locked in a keen contest with Congress and JD(S). Congress is seeking to displace BJP from power and prevent JD(S) from emerging as a king maker.

The decision to fight Karnataka election is seen as an attempt by Pawar to regain national party status, which it had lost due to poor performance in Goa, Meghalaya and Arunachal Pradesh where it had enjoyed the status of a state party.

NCP leaders hope to gain state party status to come closer to regaining national party status. An impressive show in Karnataka would not immediately give NCP national party status as it needs to get simular status in other states.

However, the previous election results are not encouraging for the NCP. In 2014, the NCP contested only 14 seats but could get only 10,465 votes or 0.03% of the total votes polled while in 2018, it fought 24 seats and got 18,886 votes or 0.06 per cent votes.