INDIA Bloc Cooperation Shows on Ground from Nagpur to Nagaur

New Delhi: Cooperation among the INDIA bloc parties on the ground showed on Tuesday during the filing of nominations in two distant parts of the country.

In Maharashtra's Nagpur, leaders and workers of the NCP Sharadchandra Pawar and Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) joined Congress Lok Sabha candidate Vikas Thakre procession ahead of the filing of nomination papers, while in Rajasthan's Nagaur, senior leaders of the grand old party were seen together with RLP leader Hanuman Beniwal, who submitted his papers before the poll officials.

The Congress has left the Nagaur seat for the RLP making the alliance official but a similar pact is yet to be announced in Maharashtra.

"It was a very successful roadshow. Leaders and workers from the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) attended the filing of nomination by our Nagpur candidate Vikas Thakre," All India Congress Committee (AICC) secretary-in-charge of Gujarat Ram Kishan Ojha, who was present on the occasion, told ETV Bharat.

According to the AICC functionary, "the show of unity in Nagpur sent a message across the western state." Vikas, said Ojha, is a sitting MLA of the Congress and a strong candidate in the city where the headquarters of the RSS are located.

Accordingly, Maharashtra Congress chief Nana Patole and Leader of the Opposition in the Maharashtra Assembly Vijay Wadettiwar besides former state home minister Anil Deshmukh from the NCP SP group and Shiv Sena UBT MLC Dushyant Chaturvedi were present when Vikas Thakre filed his nomination papers.

The display of unity came at a time amid reports that the Sena UBT's stiff approach is delaying an announcement of the seat-sharing. "Most of the alliance talks are over barring Sangli, Bhiwandi and Kolhapur. These should also conclude in a day or two. When seats are negotiated both sides pit up their claims but any decision is made only in the spirit of cooperation," a senior AICC functionary said.

In Nagaur, two term Congress MLA from Parbatsar Ramniwas Gawariya drove the car in which RLP leader and alliance nominee Hanuman Beniwal sat beside him.

Nagaur district Congress chief and Makrana MLA Zakir Hussain and former MLA Chetan Dudi sat on the rear seat in the same vehicle which was followed by a big convoy, said the party insiders. "This unity will show results in the coming national polls," AICC secretary in-charge of Rajasthan Virender Rathore told ETV Bharat.

However, party insiders said the proposed alliance with the tribal outfit BAP looked uncertain with the Congress having declared candidates on all the 24 seats barring Dungarpur-Banswara.

The BAP was demanding that Congress should withdraw its candidate Tarachand Meena from Udaipur and leave the seat for it. But local Congress leaders and workers are not in favour of the proposal, said party insiders.

Former Congress leader Jyoti Mirdha is now BJP nominee from Nagaur and is pitted against Hanuman Beniwal, who had contested in 2019 as an NDA nominee. As Jat voters are dominant in Nagaur, both the rival candidates belong to the influential community. Hanuman had defeated Jyoti in the 2019 and 2014 Lok Sabha polls in Nagaur. This has made the contest very interesting in 2024 with both the Congress and the BJP trying to win as many seats as possible.