08 December,2024 02:20 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee president Nana Patole, Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray, NCP-SP National president Sharad Pawar. File Pic
Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) leaders on Sunday convened a significant meeting in Mumbai to discuss pressing issues following their recent electoral setbacks, reported ANI.
Key figures who attended the meeting include Aaditya Thackeray, Vijay Wadettiwar, Sunil Prabhu, Jitendra Awhad, Nitin Raut, and Nana Patole.
Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray on Saturday announced that the party's winning MLAs would refrain from taking the oath of office in the ongoing special session of the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly.
Aaditya Thackeray also expressed skepticism regarding the legitimacy of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs).
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"Today we have decided that our (Shiv Sena UBT) winning MLAs will not take the oath. If this was the mandate of the people, people would have been happy and celebrated it. However, there was no such celebration or enthusiasm from the public. We have doubts about EVM," Aaditya Thackeray said.
This meeting comes in the wake of disappointing results for the MVA in the Maharashtra Assembly Election held on November 20.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led Mahayuti alliance achieved a resounding victory, securing 235 seats, with the BJP alone winning 132 seats.
The Shiv Sena (UBT) garnered 20 seats, while the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) from the Sharad Pawar faction claimed 10 seats. Congress, a major partner in the MVA, only managed to win 16 seats, marking a significant decline.
In response to the electoral outcome, Congress General Secretary KC Venugopal announced a comprehensive review of their performance.
During a recent Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting, which saw the participation of 81 members, it was decided to establish internal committees at the block and district levels to address "electoral performance and organisational issues."
Venugopal stated, "We analysed the performance of the party in the recently concluded Assembly election. The CWC has decided to constitute internal committees to look into matters related to electoral performance and organisational issues in the blocks and districts."
The ruling Mahayuti alliance in Maharashtra criticised opposition parties for allegedly misleading the public regarding EVMs following the recent assembly elections, reported news agency PTI.
Shiv Sena leader Uday Samant criticised the opposition's double standards regarding the oath-taking ceremony.
"It is because of the MVA's double standards that the Samajwadi Party has parted from the alliance. Yesterday, they boycotted the oath-taking ceremony, and today, they will hopefully take oath as members, which will again highlight their double standards," he said.
He claimed the opposition had come up with a "fake narrative" intended to distract people from their electoral defeat.
(With inputs from ANI, PTI)