"No dispute over seat sharing": BJP MLA Ameet Satam on upcoming BMC polls

Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], December 27 : BJP MLA Ameet Satam on Friday denied reports of a dispute over seat sharing with the Shiv Sena, saying that there is no disagreement and the Mahayuti alliance will contest the BMC elections on all 227 seats.
The BJP MLA also said that the decision on the remaining 27 seats will depend on the candidates contesting against them.
"There was a meeting of Shiv Sena. In this meeting, where the joint meetings of Deputy CM Eknath Shinde and CM Devendra Fadnavis will be held, where the campaign will begin and end, where Shiv Sena and BJP will do their joint meetings, to discuss all this, we had a meeting....There is no dispute over seat sharing... Mahayuti alliance will fight elections on 227 seats...We have reached a consensus on more than 200 seats....the decision on the remaining 27 seats will depend on the candidates contesting against them," Satam told ANI.
Earlier, Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray and MNS chief Raj Thackeray announced their alliance ahead of the upcoming Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) polls. This political reunion of the Thackeray brothers, who had been estranged for years, ahead of the upcoming polls, has evoked strong reactions in the political sphere.
Even as the ruling Mahayuti in Maharashtra dismisses the political relevance of the alliance between UBT Sena and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS), the Thackeray loyalists are describing the moment as "historic," hoping that Uddhav and Raj Thackeray joining hands would bring the ideology of "son of the soil" to the forefront again.
In a post on X, Raj Thackeray said that the two parties coming together was not merely about seat sharing, but about "burying the forces that are today attempting to erase the existence of the Marathi people in Mumbai and its surroundings, and tomorrow in other parts of the state."
The MNS chief also assured that the mayor of Mumbai will be a Marathi person.
"The Mayor of Mumbai will be a Marathi and will be ours," Raj Thackeray said while addressing a presser along with his cousin Uddhav.
Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray called for Marathi unity after his party allied with Raj Thackeray-led MNS.
Uddhav said, "During the assembly elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party engaged in negative campaigning. With the slogan 'If we divide, we will be cut,' an attempt was made to sow discord among the Marathi people. Now, if a mistake has been made, its consequences will be serious. If division happens again, we will be finished. Therefore, the Marathi people should not break, should not divide."
Reacting to these developments, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said that Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray and his party have shown their true character by allying with groups involved in anti-national and harmful activities just to gain votes, and warned that the public would respond strongly.
Speaking to the reporters, Devendra Fadnavis said, "The true face and character of Uddhav Thackeray and his army 'UBT' has been revealed by those who handed over the state to them in their greed for power. If they ally (in coalition) with people who engage in anti-national, anti-religion, anti-humanity activities just for the policy of appeasing votes, then the public will give them a befitting response."
The State Election Commission in Maharashtra has announced elections in 29 municipal corporations across the state, including the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) and the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC). Polling will be held on January 15, with counting scheduled for January 16.