Mumbai:
Seat-sharing - the stumbling block of many a political alliance - is in focus before the 2024 Maharashtra Assembly election, with the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi expected to hold a second round of talks this week, to continue dividing the state's 288 seats ahead of voting expected in October.
The first round was on Saturday in which a deal for Mumbai's 36 seats was "99 per cent finalised", the Shiv Sena's Sanjay Raut said, though also stating details will be shared after a 'full agreement' is reached. He stressed, however, "We want Mumbai in the hands of Marathi-speaking people."
Mr Raut's assertions aside, sources told NDTV there is still friction over the division of Mumbai's 36 seats; it appears ex-Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray's Sena wants 16-20 seats and the Congress at least 15. The third MVA member - Sharad Pawar's NCP - is believed to want seven to eight seats