The Maha Vikas Aghadi’s poor performance in the Maharashtra Assembly elections is likely to cost it the opposition leader’s post in the new assembly. As none of the opposition parties managed to win more than 20 seats in the election, perhaps for the first time in six decades, the new assembly is unlikely to get an opposition leader.
The ruling Mahayuti alliance won the Maharashtra Assembly polls by a landslide and retained power. The Bharatiya Janata Party-led alliance won 234 of 288 seats in the assembly. The BJP alone won 45 per cent of seats in the assembly.
However, the MVA comprising Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena, Congress and Nationalist Congress Party (Sharad Pawar faction) suffered a humiliating loss in the recently concluded polls. The Congress, which contested in 101 seats managed to win only 16. The Shiv Sena (UBT) won only 20 seats out of the 95 it contested and the NCP (Sharad Pawar) faction won just 10 out of 86 seats it contested. However, tallies of parties in MVA do not meet the requisite for opposition leader’s post.
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With none of the opposition parties winning at least 10 per cent of seats of the total strength of the assembly, i.e. 28 seats, the new assembly is unlikely to have an opposition leader. According to reports, though the combined strength of MVA fulfils the regulation, it is not considered for the opposition leader’s role.
According to NDTV, states of Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Manipur, Nagaland and Sikkim don't have opposition leaders because of the lack of parties in the opposition with at least 10 per cent seats.