Shiv Sena will decide fate of Maharashtra: Sanjay Raut tells BJP

Amid the ongoing political slugfest between BJP and Shiv Sena, Sena leader and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut on Wednesday said that it is not advisable to form the government in Maharashtra in a hurry because the state needs a stable government.

Raut praised NCP leader Ajit Pawar and said that the NCP leader appeared confident during his press conference and it seems that the result of Maharashtra Assembly election has infused new energy in the party.

Responding to Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis' remarks that the BJP will form government in the state in alliance with Shiv Sena, Raut said that the Sena welcomes his statement and it is important that the two parties remain together. The senior Shiv Sena leader, however, stressed that the BJP must not forget the commitments which it had made to Sena before the Lok Sabha election.

Raut made it clear that Shiv Sena leaders are not in touch with BJP and party chief Uddhav Thackeray is the only person who will take a final decision on the party's future course of action. When asked if the Shiv Sena will take support from Congress and NCP to form the government, Raut said that Congress-NCP will keep talking till the formation of new government in the state.

Raut stressed that BJP and Shiv Sena are still allies but his party will support BJP only if the latter agrees to accept the 50:50 formula agreed between BJP president Amit Shah and Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray.

The Shiv Sena leader expressed confidence saying that his party will decide the fate of Maharashtra. Raut rejected media reports that some Sena MLAs would join the BJP, stressing that it seems highly unlikely that any Sena MLA will quit the party.

When asked that BJP has offered 13 ministerial berths to Shiv Sena in order to get its support, Raut said that if media have got some information from the BJP then it should place such information in public domain.

Raut said that any leader who has the support of 145 MLAs will become the next chief minister of Maharashtra and if the Governor calls the single largest to form the government then the leader of that party will have to prove majority on the floor of the Assembly.

The BJP and Shiv Sena, with 105 and 56 seats, respectively, have been finding it tough to reach a final settlement regarding the formation of the government. The Shiv Sena has put forth the demand to form a coalition government under 50:50 formula, under which CM-elects of both the parties will get the top post for 2.5 years each. However, BJP is not ready to consider the demand.