A representative image of a person casting vote.
Credit: PTI File Photo
Mumbai: A total of 4,136 candidates are in the fray for the November 20 Maharashtra assembly elections, a rise of 27.7 per cent over the number five years ago.
There are as many as 2,086 independent contenders among them.
The Election Commission on Thursday made available the final figures of each party's candidates after withdrawals and rejections at the scrutiny stage even as campaigning is underway in full swing.
In 2019, when the fight was between BJP-Shiv Sena and Congress-NCP alliances, a total of 3,239 candidates contested the elections.
This time, the political landscape is more fragmented with the Shiv Sena and Nationalist Congress Party splitting up in the last two years. The assembly has a total of 288 seats.
Of the ruling Mahayuti alliance, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has fielded 149 candidates, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena has fielded 81 candidates, and deputy CM Ajit Pawar-led NCP has fielded 59.
In the Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi, the Congress has fielded 101 candidates, Shiv Sena (UBT) led by Uddhav Thackeray has 95 candidates in the fray and NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar) has 86 candidates.
In some constituencies, there would be friendly fights between allies.
Of smaller parties, the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) has fielded 237 candidates and the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) has 17 candidates in the fray.
Assembly Elections 2024 | The Maharashtra Assembly polls will take place against the backdrop of a fractured political landscape in the western state where the Shiv Sena and NCP will be going up against the Uddhav Thackeray and Sharad Pawar factions, even as the BJP and Congress try to make their mark. Meanwhile, in Jharkhand, the JMM faces a new challenge after Hemant Soren's recent arrest and Champai, a longstanding party member, joining the BJP. The Haryana election resulted in a shock loss for Congress, which was looking to galvanize on the Lok Sabha poll performance, while J&K also saw the grand old party eventually stepping away from the cabinet, with Omar Abdullah's JKNC forming government. It remains to be seen if the upcoming polls help BJP cement its position further or provide a fillip to I.N.D.I.A. Check live updates and track the latest coverage, live news, in-depth opinions, and analyses only on Deccan Herald.
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