No breakthrough, but some progress
There were signs of a rapprochement between allies, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Shiv Sena, in Maharashtra over sharing of portfolios in the next government but the two struggled to agree on the issue of rotational chief ministers.
Amid the stand-off, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis flew to Nagpur on Tuesday night and met RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat. He was at the RSS headquarters for one-and-a-half hours, but RSS functionaries were tight-lipped about what transpired at the meeting.
The tussle between the two allies since the Assembly poll results were announced has delayed government formation, a Constitutional obligation that has to be fulfilled before November 9 when the term of the current Assembly ends.
Earlier in the day, after a meeting of BJP leaders called by Fadnavis at his official residence in Mumbai, Maharashtra Finance Minister Sudhir Mungantiwar said, “A good news regarding government formation can come at any moment.”
BJP state unit President Chandrakant Patil, who also attended the meeting, sought to rule out speculation that Fadnavis could be replaced. “We have extended our complete support to Fadnavis as leader of the legislative wing of the party in Maharashtra," Patil said.
Shiv Sena’s Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut demanded a written assurance from the BJP on rotational chief ministers for 2.5 years each. He also indicated that some deal has been reached between the two allies over the ‘50-50’ power-sharing formula, but not on the question of rational chief ministers. “I haven’t heard what they (BJP) leaders said. But if they have indeed spoken about discussing the sharing of the CM post, I must say it is very understanding of them,” Raut told a Marathi TV channel.
However, BJP leader and senior minister in the outgoing government Girish Mahajan said his party was not ready to discuss sharing of the chief minister’s post, even as he claimed a breakthrough would be found in two days.
The editorial in party mouthpiece Saamana published on Tuesday said the political direction of Maharashtra will depend on the steps to be taken by the outgoing CM. On Monday, Fadnavis had met BJP chief Amit Shah in New Delhi.
“Government formation is being made messy... It would be unconstitutional to enjoy powers in the role of a caretaker and play games over government formation,” the editorial said, seemingly a response to reports that Sena and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) MLAS may defect to support a BJP government.
In a related development, Republican Party of India (A) chief Ramdas Athawale said senior BJP leader Nitin Gadkari could resolve the impasse. He said the BJP was the single-largest party and the CM’S post is rightfully that party’s.
Earlier in the day, the NCP tried to put an end to speculation that it might join hands with the Sena. It said an alternative can be worked out if the Sena snapped ties with the BJP, and Arvind Sawant, the lone Sena minister at Centre, resigned.