Uddhav Thackeray set to be Maharashtra chief minister
PM Modi’s party forced out in India’s richest state amid high drama
Afour-day-old coalition government led by the Bharatiya Janata Party collapsed in the western Indian state of Maharashtra after it failed to muster a majority.
Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis resigned in Mumbai, the state’s capital, which is also home to India’s benchmark stock exchange. The latest twist in the state’s ongoing political drama is a setback for Prime Minister Narendra Modi who had backed Fadnavis’
candidacy for the top job as his party laid out its ambition to govern all of India’s states. The BJP found itself in a minority after its partner walked out of a coalition due to differences over power sharing.
Control of Maharashtra, India’s richest state, would have helped Modi implement his push to attract foreign investment and revitalise the manufacturing base at a time when the growth is at a six-year low.
The move yesterday came hours after India’s top court ordered a floor test so that Fadnavis could prove majority.
Late yesterday, Shiv Sena President Uddhav B. Thackeray met Maharashtra Governor and staked claim to form the government. He is likely to take the oath tomorrow. Earlier, he thanked Congress President Sonia Gandhi and Nationalist Congress Party President Sharad Pawar for the trust reposed in him.
Afour-day-old coalition government led by the Bharatiya Janata Party collapsed in richest Indian state of Maharashtra after it failed to muster a majority.
Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis resigned in Mumbai, hours after India’s top court ordered a floor test so that he could prove majority.
The latest twist in the political drama is a setback for Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The BJP found itself in a minority after its partner walked out of a coalition due to differences over power sharing.
Elections to the state assembly were held on October 21 and the results were declared on October 24. The BJP-Shiv Sena alliance had secured a comfortable majority by winning 105 and 56 seats respectively in the 288-member assembly. The alliance of Congress and NCP won 44 and 54 seats respectively.
So how did the BJP find itself on the back foot? A look at the events over the past few days:
Why did the chief minister Fadnavis resign?
Fadnavis tendered his resignation to Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari hours after Ajit Pawar resigned as deputy chief minister, three days after their dramatic swearing-in ceremony on November 23. Explaining why he quit, Fadnavis said, “Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Ajit Pawar decided to help us to form the government. After talking with him, we formed the government on that basis. Today [Tuesday], when the Supreme Court gave its order, Ajit Pawar met and told me he was unable continue in the alliance. He tendered his resignation. Since he resigned, we do not have majority.”
What was the Supreme Court’s order?
Yesterday, the Supreme Court ordered that the Maharashtra floor test be held within 24 hours today through open ballot. The court said the floor test would be conducted by the pro-team speaker after all the legislative assembly members were sworn in by 5pm. The court ordered the proceedings to be telecast live.
“In a situation wherein, if the floor test is delayed, there is a possibility of horse-trading, it becomes incumbent upon the court to act to protect the democratic values,” it observed.
I am grateful to Hon’ble Supreme Court for upholding democratic values and constitutional principles.” Sharad Pawar| Nationalist Congress Party chief
No judicial pronouncement on issues of the constitution can be a setback to any political party.” Nalin Kohli | BJP’s national spokesperson
The midnight move by the BJP to form a government in Maharashtra was an insult of the Constitution.” Arvind Sawant | Shiv Sena leader
What was the reaction?
Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut said, “Even if the court gives us [just] 30 minutes, we will prove our majority. We are thankful to the Supreme Court.”
Terming the court order for floor test as a slap on BJPAjit Pawar alliance, Congress spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala accused the two of “hijacking the mandate”.
Why did the three parties parade their MLAs?
As many as 162 Members of Legislative Assembly (MLAs) of ‘Maha Vikas Aghadi’ comprising Shiv Sena, NCP and Congress assembled for a joint ‘parade’ at a hotel in Mumbai and took oath not to fall prey to any inducements by the BJP.
How did the NCP’s Ajit Pawar ally with the BJP?
Ajit Pawar stunned the NCP by engineering an alliance and a midnight coup with the BJP, which saw Fadnavis’ return to power. In a series of secretive manoeuvres, President’s Rule was revoked at 5.47am on November 23 and, by 8am, Fadnavis
and Pawar were sworn in. Ajit Pawar led a faction of his party to unite with BJP and form the government in the state. Sharad Pawar announced that Ajit’s decision to support BJP was his own and was not endorsed by the party. Ajit was removed as NCP’s Parliamentary Party Leader.
What led to the split between BJP and Sena?
The BJP and Shiv Sena had fought Maharashtra assembly election as an alliance but parted ways after the results were announced over sharing the chief ministerial post. Shiv Sena wanted a guarantee of 50:50 power-sharing, including
rotational chief ministership, but BJP rejected it.
So why did the three unlikely allies unite?
As the two parties locked horns on government formation, Shiv Sena-NCP-Congress combine came together to stake claim. After a series of meetings among the senior leaders of the three parties, Sena spokesperson Sanjay Raut hinted that his party would eventually form the government along with NCP and Congress in the state.
Why was President’s Rule imposed in Maharashtra?
On November 8, the BJP was invited by Governor Koshyari to
show a letter of support of its allies. However, the BJP clarified that it was unable to form the government since it did not have the required numbers.
On November 12, after even NCP failed to gain a majority support, the governor recommended imposing the President’s Rule to the Council of Ministers of India and the President. The recommendation was accepted and the President’s Rule was immediately imposed in the state.
On November 23, in the early hours, the President’s Rule was revoked as the BJP led by Fadnavis formed the government with help of Ajit Pawar’s breakaway faction of NCP.