Maharashtra News: Will back any candidate announced by Cong, NCP(SP) as MVA’s CM face, says Uddhav Thackeray

Former chief minister of Maharashtra, Uddhav Thackeray said on August 16 that he will back any candidate announced by Congress and NCP(SP) as CM face of Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) in the forthcoming assembly elections.

"Let's decide the CM face of Maha Vikas Aghadi, I will support it. Let Congress, NCP-SCP suggest their CM face, I will support it because we have to work for the betterment of Maharashtra and I want to give a reply to these '50 khokas' & 'gaddar' that people want us, not you," Thakeray was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.

The 288-member Maharashtra assembly is going to polls later this year. The Election Commission of India is scheduled to announce dates of assembly elections at 3 pm today. Apart from Maharashtra, assembly polls are due to Jharkhand, Haryana and Jammu and Kashmir this year. 

Thackeray's remarks come amid reports that the MVA leadership is likely to appoint as campaign chief for the upcoming assembly elections. The CM name will likely be decided after the election results in order to avoid bickering among its leaders.

Prominent leaders of the MVA constituents, the Congress, the Shiv Sena (UBT) and the NCP (SP) met in Mumbai on August 16. The meeting comes days after Thackeray met Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi in New Delhi. The Friday's meeting was hosted by Shiv Sena (UBT).

The Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) stunned the ruling Mahayuti Alliance in Maharashtra by winning 30 of the 48 Lok Sabha seats. The Ajit Pawar-led NCP won just one seat, Raigad, while the Sharad Pawar faction bagged eight.

Though voters chose differently in the Lok Sabha and Assembly Elections, the outcome of the Lok Sabha elections will have a bearing on the upcoming state assembly elections in these two states.