NCP wants share in chief minister's office, Congress ministries

Sharing the Chief Ministers Post for equal time was why the Shiv Sena and BJP split Now the same issue seems to be delaying the formation of an alternative governmentIf the Democratic Front leaders are to be believed besides deciding a common minimum program CMP the Congress and NCP want another CMP issue to be addressed too that of the Chief Ministers PostLike the Sena we too want the CM seat for equal tenure After all the NCPCongress alliance has 100 MLAs as against 56 of the Sena a senior NCP functionary said on condition of anonymityMeanwhile after speaking to NCP chief Sharad Pawar Congress chief Sonia Gandhi deputed a delegation of party leaders to discuss the issue and take it ahead The Congress Working Committee CWC meeting scheduled on Tuesday was cancelled and party leaders were asked to march to Mumbai to meet Pawar and chalk out a strategy to resolve the political crisis in MaharashtraPrithviraj Chavan Ajit Pawar during a CongNCP press conference at Y B Chavan Centre on TuesdayCongress and NCP leaders after holding a marathon meeting addressed media in Mumbai and made it clear that the DF alliance has not yet extended support to the SenaBefore deciding on whether to support Sena the DF partners needs todraw a common minimum program and even other issues which includes ideological differences said Ahmed Patel of the Congress He said it was only on Monday that Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray called Gandhi and sought supportPawar the Maratha strongman who has emerged as kingmaker post assembly results took a jibe on the decision of imposing Presidential rule in MaharashtraWe have ample time to decide our future course of action the octogenarian leader said about the governors decision Pawars statement clearly indicated that the DF is keen to resolve the crisis and form a governmentNineteen days after after results were declared a new government is yet to be formed The saffron alliance has got a clear majority of 161 seats in the 288member House But the Sena has refused to support the BJP unless the latter honors the commitment it had apparently given before the Lok Sabha pollsSharad Pawar and Mallikarjun Kharge during a CongNCP press conference at Y B Chavan Centre on TuesdayThe Sena has been insisting on equal share in power including sharing of the CM post the request which the BJP has out rightly rejectedMeanwhile a senior Congress leader maintained that if Congress decides to support Sena it should be from within the government and not from outsideThe way NCP is asking for its share in the government the Congress too should demand 14 ministerial berths in the cabinet Whether you support from outside or are a part of the government the damage of going along with a saffron party is going to be same Hence being part of the government will at least help the party to improve its performance through the portfolios it gets in the state government the leader said in a clear indication that the Congress is seriously considering supporting the SenaNo wonder Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray too speaking to media hinted of new political alliances shaping up Asked about the BJP leaders questioning Sena having alliance with parties with ideological differences Thackeray said I am studying the draft of the alliance that was formed between BJP and PDP in Jammu and Kashmir BJP and Nitish Kumar in BiharCatch 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