The Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray clarified that there is no deadlock in discussions over the upcoming Rajya Sabha elections, asserting that the lone winnable seat should go to his party due to its numerical strength.

Aaditya Thackeray stated, ‘There is no deadlock in talks for the Rajya Sabha; all parties are in communication with each other. We have put forward our claim on the upcoming Rajya Sabha seat, as numerically and in terms of the rotation policy fixed for the MVA, the seat should be contested by the ShivSenaUBT.’

Senior party leader Sanjay Raut said discussions within the MVA are on for the lone Rajya Sabha seat ahead of the March 16 polls, but as the single largest Opposition party, the stand of the Shiv Sena UBT will be crucial to the decision. He also clarified that discussions within the MVA are ongoing and will continue until the last minute. 

Raut said that several leaders, including former MPs Rajan Vichare and Vinayak Raut, have met party chief Uddhav Thackeray to express their desire to contest the Rajya Sabha polls. It is worth noting that both leaders lost the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. 

All three MVA constituents - Shiv Sena (UBT), Congress and NCP(SP)  have staked claim to the sole seat. In terms of current strength, the Sena (UBT) has 20 MLAs, followed by Congress with 16 and NCP(SP) with 10. Based on this, Shiv Sena (UBT) considers itself the strongest contender.

The Rajya Sabha terms of several prominent leaders are coming to an end in April. These include Nationalist Congress Party (Sharad Pawar) [NCP(SP)] chief Sharad Pawar, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Priyanka Chaturvedi, Fauzia Khan of NCP(SP), Ramdas Athawale of RPI (Athawale), BJP's Bhagwat Karad, Congress's Rajani Patil and NCP's Dhairysheel Patil.

Raut said that Veteran politician Pawar is keen on another stint in the Upper House and added that Uddhav Thackeray and NCP(SP) leader Jayant Patil held discussions on the matter.

Sanjay Raut added, ’Decision will be taken as MVA. Whatever decision we make, it will be taken with consensus. Shiv Sena (UBT) is the largest party, and its stand will be important’. Raut also stressed that the Shiv Sena (UBT) wants to send its representative to the Rajya Sabha because it is a regional party, and its chief stand is that it should have at least two representatives in the Upper House.

Voting for Maharashtra's seven Rajya Sabha seats is scheduled for March 16th, and counting will also take place on the same day.