Uddhav Thackeray's Shiv Sena announces its Lok Sabha candidates with Arvind Sawant and Anil Desai among the fielded names.

The Shiv Sena (UBT) recently unveiled its initial roster of 17 candidates for the upcoming Maharashtra Lok Sabha elections, with former Union ministers Anant Geete and Arvind Sawant slated to contest from Raigad and South Mumbai respectively. Other notable nominations include Anil Desai for Mumbai South Central, Rajan Vichare for Thane, Amol Kirtikar for Mumbai North-West, and Sanjay Patil for Mumbai North-East. As part of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), the party is aligned with the ruling coalition in the state.

In contrast, the NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar), another MVA member, is yet to finalize its candidate list. Similarly, the Congress has revealed its candidates for certain constituencies where there are no clashes with alliance partners. The MVA bloc, which includes parties like the Shiv Sena (UBT), NCP, and Congress, is in the process of settling their seat-sharing arrangement.

Maharashtra, with its 48 Lok Sabha seats, is gearing up for the elections scheduled in five phases starting from April 19. As the nomination deadline for the initial phase is March 27, political parties are working to finalize their candidates for the upcoming polls. Additionally, the Shiv Sena (UBT) under the leadership of Chief Minister Eknath Shinde is expected to announce its candidate lineup shortly.