Cong-NCP announce seat-sharing pact in Maha

The Congress and the NCP Saturday announced their seat-sharing pact in Maharashtra for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls with the two parties agreeing to contest 26 and 22 seats respectively.

Addressing a press conference here, Maharashtra Congress chief Ashok Chavan and senior Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Ajit Pawar said 56 parties and organisations have come together to support the alliance to take on the BJP-Shiv Sena combine.

From its share of seats, the Congress will give Palghar seat to the Bahujan Vikas Aghadi and another undeclared seat to Raju Shetti's Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana.

From its 22 seats, the NCP will leave Hatkanangle seat for Shetti, who is the sitting MP from there, and give another to Independent MLA Ravi Rana's Yuva Swabhiman Party.

Without naming any parties, Chavan and Pawar dubbed those who stayed away from the Congress-NCP alliance as the "B team of the BJP".

The remarks were an apparent reference to Bharipa Bahujan Mahasangh leader Prakash Ambedkar, who refused to join hands with the alliance.

Overcoming their strained ties and grandiose declarations of going solo, the BJP and the Shiv Sena had announced their seat-sharing pact for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls last month.

The BJP will contest 25 of the 48 Lok Sabha seats in Maharashtra and the Sena 23.