NCP leader Sharad Pawar to meet Sonia Gandhi as impasse continues in Maharashtra

18:35 November 02

Sharad Pawar to visit Sonia Gandhi

Amid an impasse over government formation in Maharashtra, NCP supremo Sharad Pawar will meet Congress president Sonia Gandhi in Delhi on Monday. Ajit, who was deputy chief minister in the previous Congress-NCP government, also said on Saturday that the two parties have maintained right from the day of Assembly poll results (October 24) that they will sit in opposition.

No party or alliance has staked claim to form government in Maharashtra yet. 

The BJP won 105 seats in the polls followed by ally Sena (56), NCP (54) and Congress (44) in the 288-member Assembly.

The BJP and Shiv Sena, who contested the election together, however, have been bickering over the chief minister's post.

There was also speculation that the Shiv Sena may join hands with the NCP and form government with outside support from the Congress.

15:45 November 02

Congress will sit in Opposition: Kharge

Senior Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge said that Congress has not held discussions with any party to form a coalition government in Maharashtra. He further claimed that voters have given Congress a mandate to sit in the Opposition. 
 

13:54 November 02

NCP leader Sharad Pawar to meet Sonia Gandhi as impasse continues in Maharashtra

Mumbai: Shiv Sena on Saturday launched an attack on its ally BJP with whom it is engaged in a power-sharing tussle over Maharashtra government formation and said it will soon drop its "wait and watch mode" after BJP minister Sudhir Mungantiwar's "threat" that president's rule may be imposed if a new state government is not in place by November 7.

"If there is a delay in forming the government in a state and a minister from the ruling party has said that President's rule will be imposed in Maharashtra if the government is not formed, is this a threat to those MLAs who have been elected?" Raut said during a press conference here.  

"A minister is repeatedly threatening to impose president's rule. It is being used to intimidate new MLAs in order to garner their support. If anybody tries to misuse President or Governor's house like this it is a threat to democracy,"  the Sena leader said.

"Shiv Sena will soon leave the role of wait and watch," he added.

"After you failed in all methods, you (BJP) now started threatening to impose the President's rule. If anybody tries to come to power by threatening to impose President Rule then the people of Maharashtra will not give importance to this threat," he said.