Over to Delhi; Pawar, Sonia to seal CMP

The discussions on government formation by the Shiv Sena are over and the common minimum programme is just short of being sealed.

Now, it is over to New Delhi where the 3-party alliance and the nitty-gritty of their power-sharing will get formal approval.

NCP Chief Sharad Pawar is expected to meet Congress President Sonia Gandhi on Monday; in all probability, later, once a consensus is reached, Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray will also meet the two leaders.

Giving a strong signal of the increased camaraderie between the three parties, a joint delegation is meeting Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari to demand immediate relief for farmers and kick-starting the stalled administration.

The troika has finalised the draft of the Common Minimum Programme, which will be referred for approval to the three leaderships. The CMP has skirted all Hindutva issues, said sources. ‘‘There are no controversial issues in the draft," said NCP leader Nawab Malik. ‘‘The government is likely to be formed in 20 days and the CM will be from the Shiv Sena,’’ said Malik That the dust has settled and the contours of the non-BJP formulation have taken shape was apparent when NCP leader Sharad Pawar remarked on Friday that he expects the Shiv Sena government to complete a full term. ‘‘This government will be formed and it will complete five years. We all will ensure it runs for five years," said Pawar.

Deriding Devendra Fadnavis of the BJP for predicting that a Sena-NCP-Congress government would not last more than six months, Pawar said: "I know Devendra ji for some years. But I did not know he is a student of astrology, too."

That the troika is on a high was apparent when Sanjay Raut remarked: ‘‘We want to have the chief minister's post for the next 25 years. The Shiv Sena will provide leadership to the state, no matter who tries best to stop it.’’