Won’t play big brother, have open mind on MVA leadership: Cong’s Chennithala

The Congress will have “no big brother attitude” within the Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi alliance in poll-bound Maharashtra, and the party, which has won the largest share of Lok Sabha seats among the allies, will also “keep an open mind” while discussing key issues such as the question of MVA leadership as well its seat-sharing formula, Ramesh Chennithala, AICC in-charge of Maharashtra, said on Thursday.

“Let me make it clear that the Congress party in Maharashtra is fully committed to the coalition dharma. The Congress party will have no big brother attitude within the MVA coalition and we will work amicably with our allies on MVA’s election preparations, including on seat-sharing matters,” Chennithala told ET.

His comments came in the backdrop of Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Uddhav Thackeray stating that MVA should have a chief ministerial face in the October assembly polls in Maharashtra even as he disproved the practice of reserving the slot for the largest coalition partner.

While the Sena brass has already conveyed to the allies — Congress and NCP (SCP) — its pitch for Uddhav Thackeray as the alliance’s CM candidate, it also triggered some resentful murmurs from within the Congress with some pointing out that the party won bigger and better than other MVA allies in the Lok Sabha polls, netting 13 of the 17 seats contested, compared to Sena’s 9 (out of 21) and NCP’s 8 (out of 10 ).

Asked about the cross-talks about MVA’s leadership issue and the seat-sharing formula, Chennithala said: “The Congress party in Maharashtra has an open mind on the issue of MVA leadership and also about seat-sharing formula with our allies. Discussions are on and I feel confident to state that the Congress party, Shiv Sena and NCP are dealing with these issues with a clear sense of team spirit”.

Currently on a pre-poll tour across Maharashtra for pre-poll constituency-wise assessments and preparation of the District Congress Committees (DCCs), Chennithala also indicated that the MVA would accommodate some smaller parties in the assembly polls.”For the Congress party in Maharashtra, the top priority is to fight and defeat the unprincipled and anti-democratic BJP-controlled state government headed by Eknath Shinde. The Congress, Shiv Sena and NCP are fully committed in our unity and purpose. This was the spirit of INDIA bloc in the Lok Sabha polls. The MVA is also open to work with parties such as the Workers and Peasants Party, the Left and Samajwadi Party,” Chennithala said.