Mumbai: Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) leader Ambasdas Danve has said that Congress was overconfident in the 2024 Maharashtra Assembly Polls.
The MVA, comprising Congress, Shiv Sena and Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar) suffered a rout as the Mahayuti led by the BJP won a thumping majority and retained power in the key western state. The BJP alone won a staggering 132 out of the total 288 seats.
Speaking to reporters here, Ambadas Danve said, "The Congress unexpectedly got success in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls and their overconfidence cost us in the Assembly polls. This is my personal opinion"
"The Congress leaders were discussing who would become the Chief Minister (after the elections). There were 10 Congress leaders hopeful of becoming the Chief Minister. If we would have chosen Uddhav Thackeray (for the post of the Chief Minister), we could have benefitted," Danve further said.
He also said that it is unlikely that the elections for the local governing bodies will not be held within a year. Elections to the Municipal Corporations in Maharashtra including Mumbai and Pune have not been held for a few years.
In the polls, the Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena drew a blank. The Shiv Sena (UBT) won just 20 seats. "The MNS should make it clear whom it supported and it was against whom. There is no discussion yet on the two Thackeray brothers (Uddhav and Raj) coming together," he added.
He also took a dig at the Vanchit Bahujan Aghadhi (VBA) led by Prakash Ambedkar. "They don't contest to win the elections," Danve said.
