Having decided to contest the forthcoming Assembly polls in five States, the Shiv Sena on Wednesday that it would field candidates in 150 constituencies in the Uttar Pradesh State Assembly polls.
Within hours after the Election Commission declared the schedule for Assembly polls in five States-Uttar Pradesh, Goa, Manipur, Punjab and Uttarakhand, senior Sena leader and Union Minister of Heavy industries and public enterprises Anand Geete announced that his party would field candidates in all the five poll-bound States.
“If we are able to forge an alliance with like-minded parties in five poll-bound States, we will do so. Otherwise we will contest the polls in five states on our own strength,” Geete said.
Talking separately to media persons, Sena spokesperson Sanjay Raut said that the Sena would contest at least 150 seats in the Uttar Pradesh State Assembly polls. “As part of our political strategy, the Sena will –after Bihar-contest the Assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh and Goa. In Goa, we have already forged an alliance with the rebel RSS leader Subhash Velingkar-led Goa Suraksha Manch. In Uttar Pradesh, we will contest at least 150 seats,” Raut said.
Though the Sena has hardly any presence in Uttar Pradesh, the Sena has made it point to the UP polls in an effort to broaden its base by attempting to cut into the traditional vote bank of its senior ally, BJP.
In Goa, the Sena’s strategy to align with the Goa Suraksha Manch (GSM) may pay off, given that there is a sizeable chunk of Marathi-speaking people in the State and that it stands a good chance of opening its account in the Goa Assembly by making the most of the influence rebel RSS leader Subhash Velinkar enjoys among the Hindu votes in the state.
On its part, the Sena had demanded ten seats in its seat-sharing talks with GSM. The GSM has offered three seats, while the Sena has said that it would settle down for seven seats. At best, the GSM may give five seats to the Shiv Sena.