Maharashtra Elections: BJP Contesting More Seats Than Official Count Due To Candidates 'Transferred' To Shiv Sena And NCP

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is not only contesting the maximum number of seats in the Maharashtra assembly elections but also fielding its candidates through its alliance parties.

The BJP is contesting 152 seats and 17 of its candidates are contesting on other party symbols. These "transferred" candidates bring the total to 179, highlighting the BJP's substantial role in the seat distribution process.

12 BJP members joined the Shiv Sena faction led by Eknath Shinde, four moved to the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) under Ajit Pawar, and one candidate from the RPI quota will contest with the BJP symbol.

This arrangement also indicates the reliance of both Sena and NCP on BJP candidates, possibly due to a shortage of their own nominees who can win elections, Economic Times reported.

Shaina NC from the BJP will contest in Mumbadevi for the Sena, facing Congress's Amin Patel. Other BJP members—Santosh Shetty, Sanjana Jadhav, Nilesh Rane, and Vilas Tare—also secured tickets with the Sena.

In the NCP, BJP candidates Rajkumar Badole, Pratap Patil-Chikhlikar, Nishikant Patil, and Sanjaykaka Patel obtained tickets. Additionally, Amarjeet Singh from the BJP will represent the RPI in Mumbai under the BJP's lotus symbol.

On the other side, Congress is the largest party in the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance with a little over 100 candidates contesting on the Congress symbol.