Challenges for Congress Alliance Ahead of BMC Elections in Mumbai

Setbacks for the Congress-Led Coalition

The Congress-led coalition is encountering significant challenges as the BMC elections approach in Mumbai. The Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA), led by Prakash Ambedkar, has struggled to finalize candidates for the 16 seats allocated to them. According to sources, under the seat-sharing agreement with Congress, VBA was assigned a total of 62 seats in Mumbai. However, due to a lack of qualified candidates and incomplete documentation from several potential nominees, VBA was unable to submit nominations for these 16 seats. Reports indicate that VBA has informed Congress leadership of their inability to contest these seats, suggesting that Congress may field its own candidates instead. Following this development, Congress has bolstered its list of candidates for Mumbai.

Congress Expands Candidate List

So far, Congress has announced 143 candidates for the elections in Mumbai. VBA is contesting elections on 46 seats. Additionally, some seats have been allocated to other allied parties, including leftist groups and the Rashtriya Samaj Party (RSP). Together, Congress, VBA, and other coalition partners are competing for a total of 195 seats.

Congress Responds to the Situation

Meanwhile, Congress spokesperson Sachin Sawant commented on the situation, stating that they had allocated 62 seats to VBA as part of their coalition agreement. He noted that when VBA faced difficulties in finding candidates, they returned some seats to Congress. Such occurrences are common during elections, he added. Sawant further mentioned that clarity regarding the number of candidates Congress can field will emerge later today when the final list is released. Given the limited time available, the final list will reveal how many candidates they can announce. He assured that they will proceed in full coordination with the Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi.