BJP high command should call me: Uddhav Thackeray

With the saffron alliance seemingly on the verge of collapse after Uddhav Thackeray accused Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis of ostensibly trying to prove him a liar Shiv Sena insiders feel only Fadnavis and his political bosses can salvage the situation now The Sena insiders confidence is based on the bonhomie they have witnessed between CM Fadnavis and their party president Uddhav Thackeray in the pastSena leaders who are desperately wishing that this unprecedented impasse ends as early as possible have been expecting the CM to attempt an unconditional and apologetic route to placate UddhavOn Thursday Uddhav told his MLAs very firmly that the issue wasnt about who would be the CM first in a rotational system but Fadnaviss statement that the Sena was never promised the CMO for twoandahalf yearsHowever some Sena leaders who are averse to Fadnavis continuing in the top office in the alliance government said it was too late for the CM to reach out to the Sena chief As per our presidents demand the BJPs high command should approach him before the situation gets out of control said a Sena leader insisting a resolution would come quicker than expected if negotiations were conducted at the top levelIn Nagpur BJPs senior leader Nitin Gadkari hoped for a positive decision but asserted that Fadnavis who has been elected as the leader would be the partys CM I expect a decision in the interest of the people who have elected the BJP and Sena he said Gadkari dismissed a possibility of him replacing Fadnavis as the CMOn Thursday a confident Uddhav met all his MLAs and senior leaders in Mumbai and asserted that he would not deviate from his stand Im not doing all this to corner the BJP But if Im right in reminding them of the promise made in February the BJP high command should call me I dont want anything less or more than what was assured It is not about whether they get the CMs post first or us The CM has made a wrong statement he was reported to have told the legislators adding that if the BJP did not keep its word then he would declare his final decision at an appropriate timeEventful ThursdayThursdays political development suggested an impending constitutional crisis because the BJP approached Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari to discus legal remedies and ramifications of the situation that would arise when it would fail to make a stable government State BJP president Chandrakant Patil led a delegation to the Raj Bhavan and said later that the BJP and Sena would join hands to govern the state yet again under the leadership of Fadnavis because the people have voted for the grand allianceBJP Leader Chandrakant Patil along with Sudhir Mungantiwar Ashish Shelar and Girish Mahajan after meeting the governor on Thursday Pic Suresh KarkeraSena MP Sanjay Raut wondered if the BJP had 145 MLAs to regain the CMs seat He said that his party had strength enough to install its CM and prove its majority on the floor of the HouseAll parties except BJP want the Sena CM to lead the new government he said implying his partys reliance on the NCP and the Congress to take its agenda forward The Sena expects the BJP to face a bigger test in the lower house when the Speakers election is conducted It expects Opposition parties to vote against the BJPs Speaker candidateIn an attempt to prove that Thackeray and Fadnavis are still at good terms finance minister Sudhir Mungantiwar said that as the Sena chief had said Fadnavis was also a Sainik the alliance partners should happily accept him as the Senas CMRaut retorted asking whether the Sena should also treat PM Narendra Modi and home minister Amit Shah as the Senas membersA way forwardA cautious BJP seems to be aware of things going its way as it ruled out the formation of a minority government BJP insiders said the partys top priority was to buy time to get the Sena on board as early as possible The ruling party neither made a claim to form the government on Thursday nor did it say it would go to the Governor before the term of the lower house expired on FridayPredicting the events former CM Prithviraj Chavan said the governor might recommend Presidents Rule if no party approached him to form the government by Friday But a constitutional expert said the enforcement of the Delhi rule would not happen immediatelyShiv Sena MLAs Bhaskar Jadhav Sunil Prabhu and Pratap Sarnaik after a meeting at Matoshree on Thursday Pic Ashish RajeThere is no need to have a new government Fadnaviss Cabinet could be asked to continue as a caretaker government till the BJP and Sena reach an agreement The Assembly could also be kept in suspended animation said a senior Vidhan Sabha official It was also reliably learnt that the governor had summoned the states advocate general to seek legal assistance and legally interpret the upcoming situationFear of poachingFearing poaching the Sena put up its flock at a modest hotel in Bandra West under the vigil of local heavyweight leaders Minister of state Gulabrao Patil warned the parties interested against using allurement and force to cause defections Congress opposition leader in the assembly Vijay Wadettiwar said his group was secured and ready to teach the BJP a lesson if there was an attempt to trick them State NCP president Jayant Patil said the defectors should understand that their careers would miserably if they tried any shenanigansNov 9The day the House will be dissolvedCatch up on all the latest Mumbai news crime news current affairs and also a complete guide on Mumbai from food to things to do and events across the city here Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updates