Talks between Amit Shah and Raj Thackeray positive; picture will be clear in few days: Devendra Fadnavis

Maharashtra Deputy CM Fadnavis optimistic about BJP-MNS alliance for Lok Sabha elections, awaiting Raj Thackeray's return to Mumbai.

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on March 20 said the talks between Union Home Minister Amit Shah and MNS chief Raj Thackeray were positive, and the picture would be clear in the next few days.

Mr. Thackeray met Mr. Shah in Delhi on March 19, sparking a buzz that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is looking to ally with him for the Lok Sabha elections.

Responding to questions related to the meeting between the two leaders, Mr. Fadnavis said, "Raj Thackeray met Amit Shah in Delhi. It would be premature to comment on it immediately. The picture will be clear in the next few days, and we will brief you in detail."

Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) leader Bala Nandgaonkar has said the party will contest the Lok Sabha elections on the instructions of Raj Thackeray. "We are waiting for his return to Mumbai," he said.

Mr. Thackeray had parted ways with the Shiv Sena when it was undivided and led by Uddhav Thackeray, his cousin, and founded MNS in 2006.

If the alliance is sealed, the MNS is likely be given one seat to contest from Mumbai.

On the seat-sharing formula of the ruling Mahayuti (grand alliance) for the key Lok Sabha seats like Baramati (Pune district) and Madha (Solapur district), Mr. Fadnavis said, "Be it Baramati or Madha, everyone aims to win the seats and make Narendra Modi the prime minister again."