Sena leaders meet to decide strategy ahead of Assembly session

The meeting comes a day after CM Fadnavis said that Sena representatives will not be inducted into the state govt before it wins the trust vote

Even as discussions with BJP over Shiv Sena's role in the new Maharashtra government remained inconclusive, Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray on Thursday held a meeting of party leaders in Mumbai.

Sena leaders Anil Desai and Subhash Desai were present at the meeting at Sena Bhavan to discuss the party's strategy ahead of the Assembly session starting November 10.

The meeting assumes significance as it comes just a day after Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said Sena representatives would not be inducted into the state's BJP government before it wins the trust vote.

"Pehle vishwas phir vistar (first the trust vote and then expansion)," Fadnavis had said yesterday.

Fadnavis' statement has peeved the Sena with a party MP saying BJP was not interested in getting it on board with respect and that Shiv Sena would sit in the opposition if no 'respectable solution' to end the uncertainty over its participation in the government was found by Saturday.

With 63 MLAs, Shiv Sena is the second largest party in the 288-member Assembly after BJP's 121.