Maharashtra Assembly polls: Sena faces Sena on 49 seats, NCP vs NCP on 36 seats

Maharashtra Assembly polls feature intense factional battles between Shiv Sena, NCP, BJP, and Congress on key seats.

Two Shiv Senas and two Nationalist Congress Parties (NCPs) will be in the poll fray in Maharashtra come November 20, facing each other on 85 seats in total. Voters will be presented with the choice of choosing their own faction to support on 49 seats – Shiv Sena led by Eknath Shinde or Shiv Sena (UBT) led by Uddhav Thackeray. On 36 seats, voters can choose from either the NCP led by Ajit Pawar or NCP (SP) and on five seats, two or more allies of the same alliance — Mahayuti or Maha Vikas Aghadi— face each other in a ‘friendly fight’.

As per the final seat sharing formula of the Mahayuti, the BJP is fighting on 148 seats, Sena on 80 and NCP on 53 seats. Five of the remaining seven seats have been allotted to smaller parties. Ashti, Morshi and Anushaktinagar constituencies will witness a ‘friendly fight’ between the three parties. On the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) side, Congress is fighting on 101 seats, Sena (UBT) on 94 seats and NCP (SP) on 88 seats. A ‘friendly fight’ will be fought for Paranada and Pandharpur seat between the three allies.

In the Lok Sabha polls, Ajit Pawar and Sharad Pawar clashed on two seats and the senior Pawar triumphed in both. On the other hand, Mr. Shinde managed to win seven of the thirteen seats where he clashed head-on with Mr. Thackeray. Congress was the biggest winner in the six-way fight as it won 13 of the 17 seats it contested, while BJP performed the worst, winning only 9 of the 28 seats it contested.

Here’s a look at the war of factions in these Assembly polls:

Uddhav Thackeray and Eknath Shinde will engage in a battle to stake claim over the Shiv Sena legacy in 19 seats in and around Mumbai, its core bastion. Other seats where the two factions will clash include Konkan, Marathwada, Vidarbha and North Maharashtra.

Here are five key seats which will witness the most intense battle

Kopri Pachpakhadi - Eknath Shinde Vs Kedar Dighe