Uddhav Thackeray is to meet Sharad Pawar today at an undisclosed location in Mumbai
The meeting between Congress president Sonia Gandhi and NCP chief Sharad Pawar scheduled on Sunday to discuss the way forward for government formation in Maharashtra has been postponed to Monday, sources said today.
The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief will fly to Delhi from Mumbai on Sunday evening, the sources said.
The two are scheduled to meet to discuss forming government with Uddhav Thackeray's Shiv Sena in Maharashtra, senior Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge had said on Friday.
The massive political turmoil in Maharashtra that has divided two of the country's oldest allies has also triggered a revision of seating arrangements in the Rajya Sabha. The Shiv Sena, which walked out of the Modi government at the centre this week, will sit in the opposition benches in the Rajya Sabha, party spokesperson Sanjay Raut said.
"We have got to know that the seating arrangement of two Shiv Sena MPs has been changed in the parliament," he said. Mr Raut is one of the three MPs of the Shiv Sena in the upper house.
Politics in Maharashtra took an unexpected turn after the Shiv Sena walked away from its longtime ally BJP over sharing the chief ministerial post after Assembly results were declared on October 24.
Here are the LIVE UPDATES on Maharashtra:
Sharad Pawar-Sonia Gandhi meet pushed to Monday
The meeting between Congress president Sonia Gandhi and NCP chief Sharad Pawar scheduled on Sunday to discuss the way forward for government formation in Maharashtra has been postponed to Monday, sources said today.
The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief will fly to Delhi from Mumbai on Sunday evening, the sources said.
The two are scheduled to meet to discuss forming government with Uddhav Thackeray's Shiv Sena in Maharashtra, senior Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge had said on Friday.
His comment came hours after it was announced the three parties have agreed on a minimum agenda and will meet with Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari today, which was also postponed because members of the delegation were in their constituencies carrying out drought inspection visits and filing election expenditure documents. The meeting is expected to be rescheduled but there is no word, as yet, on a new date.
Congress, NCP, Shiv Sena to meet Governor at 4.30 pm
A joint delegation of the three parties will meet the Governor at 4:30 pm. Officially it will be to talk about unemployment and farmers' distress. However, many view the meeting as a show of strength to a Governor whom the Sena has alleged is working on behalf of the BJP.
Maharashtra has been under President's rule since November 12 amid an impasse in government formation.
As Maha equations change, Raut tweets about ''naya mausam''
Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut today cryptically said advent of "new weather" is letting him forget "old pain".
At present, the Shiv Sena is in the process of working out a new equation with erstwhile rivals, NCP and Congress, as it tries to form government in the state.
BJP-Sena break-up could impact Mumbai mayor polls on November 22
The break up of the BJP-Shiv Sena alliance in Maharashtra may have an impact on Mumbai''s mayoral polls scheduled for November 22.
In the 2017 Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation polls, the Sena had won 84 corporator seats while the its then ally BJP was a close second with 82 seats in the 227-member civic house.
The BJP had then extended support to the Sena and its leader Vishwanath Mahadeshwar was elected mayor.
Mahadeshwar''s two-and-half year term ended in September this year but he was given an extension till November in view of the state Assembly polls held on October 21.
The two parties drifted apart after the Assembly results were announced on October 24, with the Sena demanding equal sharing of the chief ministerial tenure, which the BJP rejected.
The Sena currently has 94 corporators, including six who defected from the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena. The BJP has 83, followed by the Congress with 28, NCP with eight, Samajwadi Party with six, and MIM and MNS having two and one respectively.
Maharashtra BJP chief Chandrakant Patil said the BJP will form government in the state.
"BJP party workers having an optimistic attitude. They will strive to fight whole-heartedly for any upcoming elections such as Gram Panchayat, district council etc. Devendra Fadnavis has assured the party workers that Maharashtra will get a BJP government and they will get guidance from the party to newly settle their respective electoral constituencies," he said.
"Like The General Of Defeated Army...": NCP's Attack On Devendra Fadnavis
The Maharashtra BJP is scared that the politicians who joined the party ahead of the October 21 Assembly polls will defect and, hence, its leaders are claiming they will form government in the state, the NCP said on Saturday.
NCP chief spokesperson Nawab Malik made the remarks a day after Maharashtra BJP chief Chandrakant Patil said his party will soon form the government and claimed it can count on the support of 119 MLAs, including Independents, in the 288-member Assembly.
Mr Malik also attacked former Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis over his recent remark that a non-BJP government will not last for more than six months, saying the latter spoke, like the general of a defeated army, to boost the morale of his party men.
"The former chief minister is trying to boost the morale of his party workers like the general of a defeated army. We think they have been defeated and they will have to accept this. They are not ready to accept defeat, but one takes time," he said.
Sena, NCP and Congress to meet the Governor at 4:30 pm
A joint delegation of the three parties will meet the Governor at 4:30 pm. Officially it will be to talk about unemployment and farmers' distress. However, many view the meeting as a show of strength to a Governor whom the Sena has alleged is working on behalf of the BJP.
"Like Match-Fixing...": Shiv Sena Accuses BJP Of Horse-Trading Attempts
The Shiv Sena today accused the BJP of "horse-trading under the guise of President's Rule" to augment its strength in the house and make a late bid for power.
The party, through its mouthpiece, hit out at BJP leaders like Amit Shah and state chief Chandrakant Patil, who said his party was backed by 119 MLAs (including 14 independents) and that it would be impossible for any party to rule the state without support from the BJP. The editorial reminded the BJP it opted against trying to form the government in the state because it lacked the numbers.
"Yesterday (Thursday), Amit Shah said the government that will rule the state will have a figure of 145 (the majority mark in the 288-member Assembly). This is constitutionally correct. However, those who are now saying the BJP will come have already met the Governor and stated we do not have a majority," the article read.
Maharashtra has been under President's rule since Tuesday after no party staked claim to form government.