Thu Dec 25 12:28:06 UTC 2025: Okay, here’s a news article summarizing the provided text:

Maharashtra Congress Eyes Alliance with VBA for Municipal Elections

Mumbai, December 25, 2025 – The Maharashtra Congress is actively exploring an alliance with Prakash Ambedkar’s Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) for the upcoming municipal corporation elections. Maharashtra Congress President Harshwardhan Sapkal announced the ongoing discussions following a meeting of the Congress state election committee at Tilak Bhavan in Dadar.

“There is a strong desire on both sides for a Congress-Vanchit alliance. There is good communication between the leaders, and sincere efforts are being made to make the alliance possible for the corporation polls,” Sapkal stated. He added that both parties have authorized their local leadership to make decisions regarding a potential alliance.

The meeting at Tilak Bhavan focused on candidate selection for 28 municipal corporations, excluding Mumbai, based on recommendations from district Congress committees, while keeping social representation in mind, along with strategies for election management. Key figures, including Leader of Opposition Vijay Wadettiwar and former Chief Ministers Prithviraj Chavan and Sushilkumar Shinde, were in attendance.

While Sapkal is not directly involved in alliance talks for the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, AICC secretary U.B. Venkatesh has been entrusted with discussions with the VBA. In addition to the VBA, Congress is holding discussions with the Shiv Sena (UBT), which is part of the Maha Vikas Aghadi and INDI bloc.

The civic poll schedule was announced on December 15th, 2025, prompting the Congress to immediately begin its election planning. Polls to 29 municipal corporations, including Mumbai, are scheduled for January 15th, 2026, with vote counting to occur the following day.

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