The leaderships of the Shiv Sena, Congress and the NCP have so far jointly braved poaching attempts, rumours, confusion and time-consuming judicial processes as the trio try to oust what they describe as the “illegitimate” BJP government installed by political subterfuge.
The entire focus has now shifted to protecting the MLAs as the Supreme Court has not ordered an immediate floor test.
A flutter rippled through the political landscape in the evening as rebel leader Ajit Pawar tweeted that he was still in the NCP and Sharad Pawar continued to be his leader. The declaration was seen as part of a BJP strategy to foil Sharad’s attempt to isolate his nephew and render inconsequential Friday’s midnight operation steered from New Delhi.
Ajit added that the BJP-NCP would provide a stable government, fuelling speculation about some hidden understanding with his uncle that could inject another twist in the government formation drama in Maharashtra.
To establish the association of Ajit with the NCP is a critical link in the BJP’s plan, which intends to use his letter in the legal battlefield as well as on the floor of the House.
Sharad lost no time in confronting the insinuation and tweeted: “There is no question of forming an alliance with the BJP. The NCP has unanimously decided to ally with the Shiv Sena and the Congress to form the government. Ajit Pawar’s statement is false and misleading in order to create confusion and false perception among the people.”
Pawar personally met the MLAs of all three parties to clarify that the alliance was intact and nobody should pay any heed to the rumours.
Sources said the NCP was considering the option of expelling Ajit from the party to snuff out any scope for confusion and the decision could be taken after the date of the floor test becomes clear.
The NCP has already removed Ajit as its legislature party leader to pre-empt any action he might take to create legal obstacles. The new leader, Jayant Patil, publicly asked Ajit to resign as deputy chief minister and return to the NCP fold.
Leaders of the NCP-Sena-Congress combine asserted that they were in full control of more than 165 MLAs, 20 more than the 145 required to prove majority, and were leaving no stone unturned to ward off “poaching” attempts.
While Congress leader Ashok Chavan alleged the BJP was approaching party MLAs, NCP lawmakers caught a senior police officer loitering in the hotel where they were staying. The officer was confronted with the charge of illegal surveillance although he said he had come there on personal business.
The entrance to another hotel in Mumbai, where Shiv Sena and NCP MLAs have been put up. (PTI)
To bolster the confidence and trust of the MLAs, Sharad, Uddhav Thackeray, Aditya Thackeray, Supriya Sule, Sanjay Raut and other senior leaders visited all the three hotels where the various parties in the coalition have put up their legislators. Congress leader Ahmed Patel too visited the JW Marriott Hotel to talk to the MLAs.
The Congress MLAs were about to be taken to Jaipur on Saturday night before it was decided that they should stay back as the floor test could be held sometime soon.
An MLA told The Telegraph over the phone from JW Mariott: “We are seeing unprecedented coordination among the leaders of the three parties and there is no scope for doubt that the coalition is rock solid. All the MLAs are determined to defeat the BJP’s sinister games.”
The MLA added: “Nobody will go, no matter what the allurement is. We took the unthinkable step of aligning with the Sena, forced our high command to yield and now there is no question of betrayal. Every single MLA is ready to go to any extent to deliver this coalition government under Uddhav Thackeray.”
Sources said the BJP had formed a core team, including four former leaders from the NCP and the Congress (Narayan Rane, Radhakrishan Vikhe Patil, Ganesh Naik and Baburao Panchpute).
These leaders enjoy a personal rapport with Congress-NCP legislators and have started approaching them.
But the counter-operation, particularly by Sena and NCP strongmen, are formidable. “Jo jane ka sochenge, pitenge (Whoever thinks of crossing over will be thrashed),” one leader put in bluntly.
The evidence of the collective effort was on full display in Delhi too where a team of lawyers aligned with the Congress — led by Kapil Sibal and Abhishek Singhvi — handled the case in the Supreme Court.
Congress leaders Randeep Surjewala and Prithviraj Chavan said after the court order that the BJP should not shy away from the floor test if it has the majority.
“We are ready to prove our majority today. Why is the BJP seeking time and making excuses? The moment they face the Assembly, their lies will get exposed,” Chavan said.
