The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) of Sharad Pawar has deferred the release of its manifesto for the upcoming Maharashtra Assembly polls. The party has said that it will release a joint manifesto with its ally Congress in the coming days, a report in The Indian Express said. The NCP had earlier said that it will hold a press meet in Mumbai on Monday where the election document will be unveiled. However, the press conference was canceled at the last moment.
“Our manifesto is ready. However, our allies, including the Congress, were keen that we should release a joint manifesto. We have therefore decided that a combined manifesto of our allies will be released in the coming few days,” NCP spokesperson Nawab Malik said.
The Congress and NCP have reached a consensus to contest the assembly elections in an alliance in Maharashtra. As per the seat-sharing pact signed between the two parties, the NCP and Congress will field candidates on 125 seats each. The remaining 38 seats have been allotted to other regional partners to contest.
The NCP leader also criticised the Devendra Fadnavis government, saying it has caused hardship to the people of Maharashtra and that people want a change. Accusing the BJP-Shiv Sena government of making only false assurances, he said, “Apart from an economic downturn, unemployment and farmers suicide, this government has offered nothing.”
Polling in Maharashtra will be held in a single phase on October 21. The result will be announced on October 25. The main contest is between the ruling BJP-Shiv Sena combine and Congress-led alliance. While the Bharatiya Janata Party and Shiv Sena have set a target of winning more than 200 seats in the 288-member Legislative Assembly, the Congress and NCP are struggling to keep its cadre intact as scores of senior leaders from the opposition camp have switched sides.