Uddhav’s Sena serves ultimatum on BJP, stakes claim to CMs post, says no talks without pact in writing

Mumbai: Sensing an opportunity to go for the kill, Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena on Saturday has stopped short of serving an ultimatum on its under-weather ruling ally the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) staking claim to the Chief Ministers post and equal sharing of power. The Sena wants verbal talk over the power sharing agreement now in writing before it considers moving ahead in the government formation talks. The BJP pretending to be in no hurry has convened meeting of all its newly elected legislators at Vidhan Bhavan on October 30.

Giving details of the Sena legislators meeting at Matoshri earlier in the afternoon, Pratap Sarnaik (Owala Majiwada) stated that the Sena now wants that power sharing agreement arrived at between BJP president Amit Shah and Sena president Uddhav Thackeray in writing. Stating that all the 56 Sena MLAs have empowered Sena president to take a final call on the issue, he said that during their meeting before the May 2019 Lok Sabha polls it was decided that the two alliance partners shall share the CMs post for half the term and there shall be equal power sharing in government. He said that both the alliance should get equal opportunity of running the government for two and half years and the CMs post.

Former state BJP president Raosaheb Danve was guarded in his response to the Sena ultimatum arguing that though he was the state president when Shah and Thackeray had met he was not privy to what transpired between the two alliance leaders, hence could not comment on Sena demands. On the other hand sensing the door ajar, leader of opposition in legislative assembly Vijay Wadettiwar remarked that it is for the Sena to decide on whether it wants two and half year CM or a CM for full five years. He said that if the Sena came with the proposal then they could refer it to the Congress high command.

After Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), president Sharad Pawar making it clear that the NCP preferred to sit in the opposition benches, his trusted aide Praful Patel too echoed similar sentiments. However, the wily NCP chief in a bid to drive a wedge between the BJP and Sena remarked that the Sena was just in asking for a 50-50 power sharing. Patel on the other hand argued that the BJP-Sena has got the mandate and added that the NCP does not want any role in the government formation.