President`s Rule should end, Maharashtra needs an alternative government: NCP

BCP leader Nawab Malik added that during the meeting it has been decided that the next step over government formation in Maharashtra will be taken after discussion with Congress.

Amid the ongoing political stalemate over government formation in Maharashtra, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Nawab Malik on Sunday said that the NCP leaders have reached an agreement over the fact that President's Rule should end in Maharashtra and an alternate government should be formed as soon as possible.

"After the meeting we have arrived at a conclusion that President's Rule should end in Maharashtra and an alternate government should be formed," Malik told media after the core committee meeting of the NCP at party chief Sharad Pawar's residence in Pune.

Malik added that during the meeting it has been decided that the next step over government formation in Maharashtra will be taken after discussion with Congress. It is to be noted that the NCP and the Congress contested the October Assembly election in the state as allies with the NCP winning 54 and Congress 44 seats in 288-member Maharashtra Assembly. Malik said that NCP chief Pawar will meet Congress interim president Sonia Gandhi in Delhi on Monday (November 18) to hold talks over government formation in state. Malik added that the leaders of the NCP and the Congress then meet on Tuesday (November 19) to hold discussions over this matter. 

"We have decided that next decision will be taken only after discussion with Congress. Tomorrow Congress President Sonia Gandhi and Pawar Sahab will hold a meeting and day after tomorrow leaders of both the parties will meet," said Malik.

It may be recalled that the results for Maharashtra Assembly were declared on October 24 with the BJP emerging as single largest party after winning 105 seats. The Shiv Sena ended at second place with 56 seats in its kitty. Though the BJP and Shiv Sena contested the election as allies and they managed to win a comfortable majority of 161 seats, the two parties failed to form the government after Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray insisted on the implementation of 50-50 formula under which the post of chief minister was to be shared between the two parties for 2.5 years.

The BJP refused to accept Sena's demand forcing the Uddhav Thackeray-led party to snap ties with its oldest ally and look for the opportunity to form the government with support from Congress and NCP. It is expected that Shiv Sena-NCP-Congress would soon form a coalition government in the state under the leadership of Shiv Sena.