NCP core-committee meeting to discuss Maha situation in Pune today

Amidst the political stalemate in Maharashtra, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Nawab Malik said that a 21-member meeting of his party, with Sharad Pawar at its helm, will be held in Pune on Sunday.

"Party chief Sharad Pawar has called a meeting of the core committee of NCP leaders tomorrow at 4 pm in Pune. It will be 21 members meeting under the chairmanship of Sharad Pawarji," Malik told ANI here on Saturday.

Malik added that in the meeting NCP will discuss the strategies to overcome the political stalemate following which Sharad Pawar will head to Delhi to meet Congress interim President Sonia Gandhi.

"We will discuss the strategies on Maharashtra's current situation after that Pawarji will go to Delhi," he said.

"On Tuesday, a meeting between Congress and NCP leaders has been decided where we will discuss on whether Congress will be included in the formation of Maharashtra government or not," he added.

Malik refuted the reports that a meeting between the two parties had been called off, he said, "There was no meeting scheduled with Sonia Gandhi Ji during his Delhi visit when there was no meeting scheduled then there is no question of cancellation of any meeting."

Maharashtra came under President's Rule after no party was able to show numbers to form a government after the assembly polls.

The BJP and Shiv Sena, who fought the polls together, got an absolute majority but could not form a government due to differences over power-sharing.

BJP, which emerged the single-largest party with 105 seats in 288-member assembly, expressed its inability to form the government. The state Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari later asked Shiv Sena and NCP about their intent and ability to form the government. Both parties sought more time. NCP and Congress fought the elections in an alliance.