Prakash Ambedkar's Vanchit Bahujan Agadhi (VBA) is all set to field 20-25 Muslim candidates on its own for the assembly polls, as an alliance with the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (MIM) has not yet been confirmed. The challenge from the third front in Maharashtra appears to be diminishing. VBA chief Prakash Ambedkar says his party will contest all 288 seats on its own and the chances of an alliance with MIM were almost nil.

Good news for the Congress

The decision may seem like a piece of good news for the Congress. The party is aware of the impact that a potential VBA-MIM front can have on its Dalit-Muslim vote base. In the Lok Sabha polls, the combine had split votes in several seats where the margin of defeat for Congress was lower than the votes polled by the VBA or MIM candidate. 

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Maharashtra which has 288 Assembly seats will go to polls in 21 October 2019, the Election Commission announced on Saturday noon. Maharashtra assembly elections will be held in a single-phase and the counting procedure would be conducted on October 24. The Election Commission chief Sunil Arora also announced that the last date of nomination is on October 4. Arora also stated that the parties in Maharashtra had wanted the polls to be concluded by Dhanteras.

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Model Code of Conduct

The model code of conduct has into effect as soon as the announcement was made. Sunil Arora along with the state officials of the Election Commission of India and state police officers met with political parties vying for the elections.

Maharashtra election alliance

Currently, the BJP holds 122 seats while the Shiv Sena holds 63 seats. Amid growing speculation that the BJP might not agree to the 50:50 seat-sharing formula being proposed by it for the assembly elections, the Shiv Sena has been conducting interviews of ticket aspirants for all the 288 assembly seats, and it reviewed its poll preparedness on Sunday at a party meeting.

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Shiv Sena and BJP will contest the Maharashtra Assembly elections jointly, and an announcement on the seat-sharing formula will be made in the next two days, Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray said on Friday. In 2014 elections, the Shiv Sena and the BJP had contested the assembly elections separately, as the seat-sharing talks between the two parties collapsed at the last moment. The two parties came together after the elections to form the government with BJP winning 122 seats and Shiv Sena with 63.

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