'Real calculations will begin after...': Buzz over Maharashtra post-poll alliances intensifies

The buzz surrounding post-poll alliances in Maharashtra has intensified as key leaders from Ajit Pawar's NCP suggest that the pre-poll alliance may not hold after the results of the upcoming assembly elections. 

Today, NCP leader and Maharashtra minister Dilip Walse Patil hinted at potential political shifts after the November 20 elections. He emphasised that the number of seats won by individual parties would be more significant than which alliance secures a victory. 

“Then the real calculations will begin. There is room for a lot of maths after the results before the formation of the next government, as there are six parties,” Walse Patil said.

The Maharashtra elections are shaping up as a high-stakes battle between the ruling Mahayuti alliance — comprising the BJP, Shiv Sena (led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde), and Ajit Pawar's NCP — and the Maha Vikas Aghadi alliance, which includes Congress, Sharad Pawar's NCP (SP), and Uddhav Thackeray's Shiv Sena (UBT).

"There are three parties in each alliance. Let's keep the question of which alliance wins aside. What is important is how many seats each party wins,” Walse Patil added, referring to his contest from Ambegaon constituency in Pune district, where he faces NCP (SP) candidate Devdatta Nikam.

Walse Patil's remarks come days after NCP leader Nawab Malik suggested that anything could happen after the election results. "Nobody is an enemy forever. Nobody is a friend forever. Things are changing. We saw this in 2019," he said, in an apparent reference to Uddhav Thackeray's exit from the NDA in 2019.

In an interview with India Today's Rajdeep Sardesai, Malik stated, "Before the 2019 election, nobody had predicted what kind of government would come to power in Maharashtra. Anything can happen."

Malik also weighed in on the possibility of a hung assembly, suggesting that Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar could play a crucial role in government formation. "It will be a tough election in Maharashtra. It’s a neck-and-neck fight, and nobody can say that without Ajit Pawar, there would be a government. Ajit Pawar will play a key role. He can dictate his conditions as well."

There's growing speculation that if BJP and Shinde’s Sena fail to secure a majority on their own, and Ajit Pawar’s NCP performs well, Pawar may push for a hard bargain, possibly even switching sides if needed. The BJP is contesting 148 seats, Shiv Sena 85, and NCP 55.

The Maharashtra assembly elections are scheduled for November 20, with results set to be announced on November 23.