Mumbai: After a dramatic, 13-day-long tug of war with its pre-poll ally Shiv Sena, the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) has decided to approach the Maharashtra governor on Thursday.
This decision was announced by senior BJP leader Sudhir Mungantiwar, following a meeting with six senior Sena ministers. The ministers met incumbent chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Wednesday, November 6, for the first time since the election results were declared on October 24.
“One cannot separate water, no matter how much you try to. Shiv Sena and BJP are ought to be together. The good news can come anytime, we all have to just wait,” Mungantiwar told the media in Mumbai. He also reiterated the BJP’s stand that the government will be formed by the mahayuti (alliance).
“This will happen, no matter what anyone says or thinks,” Mungantiwar stressed.
Sudhir Mungantiwar, BJP: We had a comprehensive discussion, we will wait for Shiv Sena but the government will be ours only. There is no ‘if’ and ‘but’ here, you will get the news anytime that we are forming the government. #MaharashtraAssemblyPolls https://t.co/22hb25VeWE pic.twitter.com/eAHhD3iEPf
— ANI (@ANI) November 5, 2019
For the past two weeks, there have been several announcements, all claiming different situations. While Fadnavis has claimed that he is confident of returning as a chief minister, Sena leader Sanjay Raut had made his stand clear that the party would not budge until they were given an equal share in the state government.
Some BJP leaders claimed that Fadnavis and party head Amit Shah were not keen on honouring Sena’s demand.
In the opposition, Nationalist Congress Party leader Sharad Pawar has been making several statements in favour of Sena and had also indicated that his party might be interested in forming the government along with the party. The Congress, which has been divided on this, did not support Pawar and he had to eventually withdraw.
Also read: Maharashtra Stalemate Continues As Sena Hints at Alliance With NCP, Congress
Soon after Mungantiwar announced the visit to the governor’s office on Thursday morning, Raut once again sought to remind that the Sena was still not ready to budge from its demand for an ‘equal share’.
Raut had met Pawar on Wednesday the morning. Shortly afterwards, Pawar organised a press conference in Mumbai where he claimed that his party’s mandate was to sit in the opposition and that his leaders were happy to do so. He also reiterated that it would be in the interest of the BJP and Sena to form an alliance.
The BJP had won 106 seats in the assembly polls and seem to have managed the support of another 10 independent MLAs. The Sena, on the other hand, has its own 56 MLAs and another 10 independent ones. The congress and the NCP, along with their allies, have 102 seats.
If the BJP fails to convince the Sena, it would have to form a minority government and within two weeks, will have to pass the floor test.