National: Maharashtra BJP president Chandrashekhar Bawankule on Wednesday said Chief Minister Eknath Shinde should be willing to make "sacrifices", in terms of seat-sharing for the assembly polls, like the BJP has done to keep the alliance intact.

The comments come a day after the Election Commission announced the schedule for polls to 288 seats in the state assembly.

Voting is scheduled on November 20 and the counting will take place on November 23.

"Chief Minister Eknath Shinde must remain open-minded and be willing to make sacrifices. We, too, have made sacrifices to uphold the alliance. It is evident that the BJP aims to contest the seats we previously held," Mr Bawankule told ABP Majha news channel in Nagpur.

As the dominant party in the alliance, it is only natural for the BJP to seek more seats, he said.

Asked if Union Home Minister Amit Shah reportedly stated that the BJP "sacrificed" the Chief Minister's post while forging an alliance with Shinde-led Shiv Sena, Mr Bawankule said, "I do not know what Union minister Amit Shah said to Shinde. It is true that the chief minister holds the highest position and represents the government."

He said they have urged Mr Shinde that as the larger party, BJP should have a bigger share for contesting seats. It is impossible to measure who made greater "sacrifices", the BJP leader said.

"As the chief minister, he could have expected more seats to contest in the assembly polls. However, it is not feasible to enter the elections with tension within the alliance. Our stance is that we should be able to contest the seats we have previously won," Bawankule said.

There is no point in demanding more seats to contest for the sake of numbers, he said.