"If Sena Pulls Down BJP...": Sharad Pawar's Party Hints At "Alternative"

As the BJP hopes to form government in Maharashtra for a second term with Devendra Fadnavis in charge, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Nawab Malik has said his party will vote against the BJP on the floor of the house. Nawab Malik said they will see if the "Shiv Sena votes against the BJP to pull down the government", according to news agency ANI.

The BJP and its cantankerous ally Shiv Sena have failed to come to an understanding in the state; Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari has invited the BJP to form government in Maharashtra.

The Sharad Pawar-led party is keeping a close watch on the developments; it won 54 seats in the state. Mr Malik also said that NCP will try to form an alternative government in the state.

"Governor should ensure if BJP has majority or not, otherwise there will be horse trading. Despite that, if BJP forms the government in the state, we are going to vote against BJP on the floor of the House. If the BJP government falls, in the interest of the state we will try to form an alternate government," Nawab Malik told news agency ANI.

Nawab Malik also said that the NCP has called for a meeting of its MLAs on November 12, which will also be attended by Sharad Pawar.

He also called for the Governor of the state Bhagat Singh Koshyari to ensure that BJP has majority or else there will be "horse trading."

The Shiv Sena has put all its MLAs at a resort at Madh Island in suburban Mumbai. The party led by Uddhav Thackeray says it wants to stop any attempt by the BJP to poach its MLAs. Aaditya Thackeray, the first from the family to contest elections, stayed overnight with MLAs at the Madh Island resort.

The BJP's core group in Maharashtra will meet today to discuss the Governor's invite to form government in the state.

The BJP with 105 seats and the Sena with 56 seats have a clear majority in the 288-member Maharashtra assembly. However, the allies failed to reach an understanding after the Sena demanded equal power-share under what it calls was a "50:50 formula" discussed with BJP chief Amit Shah earlier this year, before the national election in May. According to the Sena, the plan was for chief ministers from each party sharing the five-year term equally.

(with inputs from ANI)