After a day of rapid developments, the Maharashtra Governor rejected Shiv Sena's request for a three-day extension to submit the letters of support. A delegation of Shiv Sena led by Aaditya Thackeray met the governor and expressed their willingness to form government in the state.
The Uddhav Thackeray-led party, which ditched the BJP's offer of playing second-fiddle in the state, depends on the support of the Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party to form government. The Congress, however, remains non-committal. "The Congress president has spoken to Sharad Pawar. The party will have further discussions with NCP," the party said in a statement.
The Congress Working Committee (CWC), the party's top decision-making body, has authorized party president Sonia Gandhi to take the final call
Later, Uddhav Thackeray spoke on the phone with Congress Interim President Sonia Gandhi to discuss government formation. Mr Thackeray also met with Nationalist Congress Party leader Sharad Pawar at a five-star hotel in Mumbai.
The NCP chief held a core group meeting in Mumbai today, over the current political situation in the state. The BJP on Sunday declined to form government in the state as it did not have the numbers. The state Governor then invited Shiv Sena, the second largest party, to stake claim.
The BJP and the Sena, long-term allies for around 30 years, won a majority together in last month's Maharashtra elections. The BJP won 105 seats and the Sena 56, which placed them comfortably ahead of the majority mark of 145 in the 288-member assembly. However, the Sena demanded a guarantee, in writing, that it would have the chief minister's post for half the term and an equal share in ministries, in what it called a "50:50" deal discussed with BJP chief Amit Shah. As Devendra Fadnavis denied any such deal, the Sena's attacks on the BJP became more and more vitriolic.