Shiv Sena, Congress, NCP may stake claim to form govt in Maharashtra tonight
Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray likely to be the CM for a full five-year term
Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray likely to be the CM for a full five-year term
Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray likely to be the CM for a full five-year term
Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray likely to be the CM for a full five-year term
Top leaders of the Shiv Sena, the Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party are meeting in Mumbai to give shape to new government to be led by the Uddhav Thackeray- headed party in Maharashtra, nearly a month after assembly poll results were announced.
The meeting focuses on finalising a common minimum programme (CMP) and power-sharing among the three parties.
Eknath Shinde, Subhash Desai, Sanjay Raut (all Shiv Sena), Ahmed Patel, Mallikarjun Kharge, K. C. Venugopal, Avinash Pande, Balasaheb Thorat, Prithviraj Chavan (Congress), Praful Patel, Jayant Patil and Ajit Pawar (NCP) took part in the meeting.
NCP chief Sharad Pawar and Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray are also attending the deliberations at Nehru Centre in South Mumbai aimed at giving momentum to install a non-BJP government in the country's richest state, which is under President's rule.
The three parties are likely to stake claim to form government in in the state either late night on Friday or Saturday morning, NCP's chief spokesman Nawab Malik has said.
He said the chief minister's post will go to the Shiv Sena.
Earlier in the day, the Congress and the NCP held talks with their pre-poll allies—the Peasants Workers Party, the Samajwadi Party, the Swabhimani Paksha and the CPI(M).
NCP leader Jayant Patil said smaller pre-poll allies of his party and the Congress have backed the idea of forming a government with the Shiv Sena to keep the BJP away from power in the state.
Maharashtra was placed under President's Rule as no party or alliance could form a government for want of requisite numbers even weeks after the results of the assembly polls were declared.
After felling out with its ally BJP over the demand for the post of the chief minister for an equal term, the Shiv Sena reached out to the Congress-NCP combine for support.
The saffron alliance had secured a comfortable majority by winning 105 and 56 seats, while the Congress and the NCP, pre-poll allies, won 44 and 54 seats, respectively.
The Shiv Sena has indicate that it would exit from the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA). The party has already withdrawn its lone minister Arvind Sawant from the Narendra Modi government.