Shiv Sena to join Cong, NCP leaders meeting guv over farmers'

Amid the parleys between the Congress, NCP and the Shiv Sena for government formation in Maharashtra, a delegation of the three parties would meet the Governor on Saturday to seek relief for rain-affected farmers.

Earlier it was announced that a Congress-NCP delegation would meet the governor, but Sena sources said their leaders too would join them.

It triggered speculation that the meeting with Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari could be for staking claim to form government, though leaders of the Shiv Sena and Congress maintained that it was only about farm distress.

The delegation will meet the Governor at Raj Bhavan around 4 pm, a Sena source said.

Former chief minister and Congress leader Prithviraj Chavan said they would demand expeditious disbursal of the special package of Rs 10,000 crore, announced earlier.

They would also demand that the government, now headed by the Governor as the state is under President's rule, should declare how much compensation farmers would get per hectare, he said.

Crops over 54.22 lakh hectares in 325 tehsils were damaged due to unseasonal rains last month. Earlier this month, the outgoing BJP-led government had sanctioned Rs 10,000 crore to provide immediate relief to the farmers.

Non-BJP parties, including the Shiv Sena, had dubbed the package as insufficient, and demanded assistance of Rs 25,000 per hectare for farmers.

The state was placed under President's rule on November 12 after no political party staked claim to form the government following declaration of assembly election results on October 24.

Talks are on between Congress, NCP and Sena for government formation, after the Sena's alliance with the BJP fell apart over sharing of the chief minister's post.