With the continuing power tussle in Maharashtra between the BJP and the Shiv Sena, the NCP on Saturday said that if Shiv Sena is ready to form a “people’s government as envisaged by Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj” minus the BJP.

NCP chief spokesperson Nawab Malik took to Twitter and in a series of tweets said, “The NCP will definitely take a positive view if the Shiv Sena is ready to form the people’s government as envisaged by Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, minus the BJP. The alternative will be available if any decision is taken in the interest of the people to form a government.”

He lashed out at Finance Minister and BJP leader Sudhir Mungantiwar for his remark on Friday that the state may head for President’s rule if the new government is not in place by November 7 as the tenure of the existing Legislative Assembly ends on November 8.

Nawab Malik, Mumbai’s NCP president, said there is no question of imposing President’s rule in Maharashtra and his party will give direction to Maharashtra in a democratic manner.

“We will not allow strangling of democracy by way of imposing the President’s rule. We are ready to give an alternate government. We are ready and other parties and the Shiv Sena should explain their stand,” he said.

लोकशाहीमध्ये राष्ट्रपती शासन लावण्याकरिता निवडणूका होत नसतात. बहुमत मिळून सुद्धा सत्ता स्थापन होत नसल्यास पर्यायी सरकारचा विचार केला जाईल… महाराष्ट्र राज्याला लवकरात लवकर सरकार देणे ही काळाची गरज आहे.https://t.co/uw77fLzyEj

— Nawab Malik (@nawabmalikncp) November 2, 2019

He further tweeted that alternatives can be available if Shiv Sena takes a decision regarding government formation in the interest of the people of the state but the first step should come from the Shiv Sena.

However, Sharad Pawar NCP chief earlier on Saturday said that the people’s mandate has asked his party to sit in the opposition and it will do it. Pawar’s comments come amid talks about the possibility of NDA constituent Shiv Sena forming government in Maharashtra with support from the NCP and the Congress. He also called the power tussle over the top post as “childish”.

Pawar met his party MLAs in Mumbai and will be coming to Delhi today for the meeting with Sonia Gandhi, though he downplayed the Opposition’s meeting.
Earlier, on Thursday, Sharad Pawar had a series of meetings with Congress leaders, including former Chief Ministers Ashok Chavan and Prithviraj Chavan, and they discussed the ongoing BJP-Sena power tussle.

However, both the parties have not revealed their cards except many second-rung leaders advocating a Sena-headed government supported by the NCP-Congress.

Meanwhile, the Maharashtra Congress has also stated that it intends to play the role of the opposition in Maharashtra. However, it hinted that it could offer “support” to a Shiv Sena-led government.

Congress wants the Sena to openly walk out from the alliance and then seek open support from the opposition.

In the recent state polls, the BJP won 105 seats, while the Sena got 56, NCP got 54 while Congress won 44 in the 288-member Assembly.

The Uddhav Thackeray-led party is demanding the post of Chief Minister for 2.5 years and 50:50 division of portfolios.

Both these demands have been rejected by the BJP which has insisted that Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis will continue to hold the post for the next five years.