Maharashtra assembly polls: Uddhav readies for all 288 seats

MUMBAI: Taking a cue from the Lok Sabha elections, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Uddhav Thackeray on Wednesday asked his party leaders to start preparations for Maharashtra assembly elections scheduled later this year.

Addressing a meeting at Sena Bhavan here, Thackeray asked his top party leaders to get poll-ready in all 288 assembly seats in the state, said a leader who attended the meeting.

In the Lok sabha elections, the Shiv Sena (UBT) contested 21 seats and won 9. The Congress won 13 out of the 17 seats it contested. Independent candidate Vishal Patil supported the Congress after his win. Sharad Pawar-led NCP fielded candidate in 10 seats and won eight seats.

Thackeray’s party underperformed among Maha Vikas Aghadi allies. “It was discussed at the meeting that Shiv Sena (UBT) made some blunders while selecting seats and candidates, resulting in loss in four to five easy-to-win Lok Sabha seats,” the party leader said. “Uddhav Thackeray does not want to repeat the mistakes in the assembly elections, therefore he has decided to undertake corrective measures before things goes out of hand,” he said.

Thackeray called for bolstering the party structure at the grassroots level. “The party network has to be strengthened at local and booth levels. There was sympathy for Uddhav Thackeray but we failed to cash in on it because of lack of booth-level network. We have enough time to tone up the lowest but key structure of the party. If it is in place, we can win more seats,” the leader added.

Later, Thackeray said there were no differences in the opposition MVA over candidates for the upcoming state legislative council polls to four constituencies. “There is no difference. It is a fact there was a loose connection in dialogue (among partners),” he said.