Maharashtra govt formation highlights: Guv invites NCP; Impasse continues

The Shiv Sena on Monday claimed that the NCP and Congress have agreed "in-principle" to support its government without the BJP in Maharashtra but failed to get letters of support from the political rivals before the deadline set by the Governor who rejected its plea for three more days to do so.

Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari on Sunday night asked the Shiv Sena to "indicate the willingness and ability" of the party to stake claim, hours after its pre-poll partner and longtime ally BJP declined to form the government.

After two crucial meetings in Delhi, the top leaders of the Congress preferred to have detailed discussions with the NCP on the current political impasse.

"The Congress President has spoken to Sharad Pawarji. The party will have further discussions with the NCP," said a terse statement issued by party general secretary K C Venugopal said.

"The Congress Working Committee met this morning and held a detailed discussion on the situation in Maharashtra after which a consultation was held with Maharashtra Congress leaders," the statement said.

The NCP, which is the third largest party in Maharashtra, on Monday night got an invite from Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari asking it to express "willingness and ability to form government", shortly after the Shiv Sena failed to submit the "requisite letter of support".

The Sena is trying to form a non-BJP government in the state with the support of the Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP). On Monday night, the Uddhav Thackeray- led party could not submit the requisite letter of support to the governor.

With 54 MLAs, the NCP is the third largest party after the BJP (105) and the Shiv Sena (56) in the 288-member House where the halfway mark in 145. The Congress has 44 MLAs.