Differing voices in Cong on support to Sena

SOME LOCAL CONGRESS LEADERS ARE OF THE VIEW THAT THE PARTY, BY EXTENDING OUTSIDE SUPPORT, COULD KEEP THE BJP OUT OF POWER

NEWDELHI: The central leadership of the Congress continues to maintain its position that it can never ally with Shiv Sena even as local leaders of the party in Maharashtra are keen to keep open their options of supporting a nonbharatiya Janata Party (BJP) dispensation led by the Sena, people familiar with the matter said on condition of anonymity.

On Friday, senior Congress leaders from Maharashtra briefed party chief Sonia Gandhi about the prevailing political crisis in the state where the two prepoll allies, the BJP and the Shiv Sena, are sparring over government formation.

Congress general secretary in-charge of Maharashtra Mallikarjun Kharge and former Union home minister Sushil Kumar Shinde are among the leaders opposed to doing any business with the Shiv Sena.

“Congress and Shiv Sena are ideologically different parties.

Kharge has already stated there is no question of the two parties coming together,” Shinde said.

But some local leaders are of the view that the party, by extending outside support to an alternative government, could keep the BJP out of power.

The Congress fought the election in alliance with the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP). Shiv Sena leader Uddhav Thackeray and NCP leader Sharad Pawar spoke on the phone on Thursday, but neither party has talked of a partnership openly. The Congress has 44 MLAS in the 288member house and the NCP, 54. the Shiv sena has 56 and the BJP, 105.

“If Shiv Sena decides, it’ll get required numbers to form a stable government in the state,’’ said Sena’s Sanjay Raut on Friday.

Pawar is expected to travel to Delhi on November 5 to discuss the issue with Congress president Sonia Gandhi. BJP leaders have said the government formation could be closed by then; they hope to strike a deal with the Sena by Sunday or Monday.

A Congress leader said they are also aware that Sena may well be using them to have its way. An NCP leader said on condition of anonymity: “Pawar saheb has said that he will sit in the opposition. But things will become clear in the next few days.’’

Former chief ministers Ashok Chavan and Prithiviraj Chavan want the Sena to formally break away from the BJP and then seek the Congress party’s support to form the government with a “concrete” proposal, the people familiar with the matter added.

“We briefed the Congress president about the political situation in the state. We discussed in detail about the elections result including our defeats by a narrow margin on many seats,” Prithviraj Chavan said after the meeting.

He said the leaders also apprised Gandhi about how the Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) of Prakash Ambedkar and Asaduddin Owaisi’s All India Majlis-eittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) had hurt the Congress-ncp alliance in many constituencies.

Former Mumbai Congress president Sanjay Nirupam, who did not campaign for the party in the assembly elections, attacked his colleagues, who are pushing for supporting the Shiv Sena.

“It’s fake. It’s their temporary fight to grab more power. They will be together again and will keep abusing us. How can some Congress leaders think of supporting Shiv Sena? Have they lost (it)?” he tweeted.

The Sena has sought the CM’S post on a rotational basis and an equal division of portfolios but BJP has refused to concede. It has maintained that Devendra Fadnavis will continue to hold the CM’S post for the next five years.