Raj Thackeray Expresses 'Comfort' With BJP, Says MNS Fighting Maharashtra Election To 'Show Strength'

Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray, reflecting on the political landscape in Maharashtra ahead of the upcoming Assembly elections, stated that he naturally feels aligned with the BJP and finds "comfort" in his relationship with the party.

Speaking to India Today, Thackeray highlighted his long-standing connection with the BJP, dating back to the times of leaders such as Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Lal Krishna Advani, and Pramod Mahajan.

"From the very beginning, I developed a relationship with the BJP. I never aligned with Congress or any other party... I find my comfort zone with the BJP," he said when asked about the possibility of a collaboration between MNS and BJP for the November 20 elections.

Thackeray's party is contesting the Assembly polls independently, intensifying competition and raising concerns over a potential split in the vote share for the ruling Mahayuti coalition.

However, the BJP has extended support to a few of MNS' candidates. For example, Amit Thackeray, Raj Thackeray's son, is contesting in Mahim, where Eknath Shinde's Shiv Sena has fielded Sada Sarvankar, but the BJP has announced its backing for Amit.

In the Sewri constituency, where Mahayuti has not put forward a candidate, MNS leader Bala Nandgaonkar is the only contender, supported by the ruling coalition. MNS is contesting against 12 seats held by Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde) and 10 seats contested by the BJP, while also offering support to Mahayuti in some constituencies.

Further speaking to India Today, Thackeray made it clear that his participation in the assembly elections is to demonstrate his party's strength.

"I had declared that we will support Narendra Modi unconditionally (in the Lok Sabha elections). And at that time, I had asked the party to be involved in the work for the upcoming assembly polls. Do you understand what this means? It means that I supported them for the Lok Sabha, but for the Vidhan Sabha, I had already declared that I will fight for my party's strength in the elections," Thackeray explained.

He expressed optimism that the Mahayuti alliance, comprising the BJP, Shinde Sena, and Ajit Pawar's NCP, would be in a position to form the government after the elections. When asked about offering support to Mahayuti, he said, "They will need our support."

Maharashtra will vote on November 20 to elect 288 members to its legislative assembly, with the results set to be declared on November 23.