Uddhav Thackeray meets Sharad Pawar, NCP says game on
Mumbai: The new-found bonhomie between the NCP and Shiv Sena was on display on Sunday after Uddhav Thackeray met Sharad Pawar at a Mumbai luxury hotel where NCP MLAs were lodged amid the high ongoing political drama in Maharashtra.
Incidentally, NCP spokesperson Clyde Crasto dubbed Pawar, the 20-year-old party's founder, as 'Renaissance Man', even as Thackeray met the NCP chief at the suburban hotel bearing the same name.
"Hey #BJP, Game on. Our 'Renaissance Man' v/s your modern day so-called '#Chanakya'. Bring it on," Crasto tweeted.
Earlier in the day, NCP leader and Maharashtra deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar assured Prime Minister Narendra Modi that he would work hard for people of the state.
Responding to Ajit Pawar's tweet, Crasto tweeted, "Dear Ajit Dada, Nice to see you reply to our Hon. PM's good wishes but just want to remind you that you are being wished because you left the hands of the Man who held your hand & taught you how to walk in your personal & political life.
Wishing you the best for the future."
The Sena-NCP bonhomie was also seen after Shiv Sena leaders Eknath Shinde and Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray's Man Friday Milind Narvekar on Saturday caught Sanjay Bansod, NCP MLA from Udgir, who was set to fly out of Mumbai.
There was speculation that he was on his way to Delhi. The buzz on social media was Bansod was missing. Shinde and Narvekar had then taken Bansod to the Y B Chavan centre in south Mumbai where an NCP meet was underway.
In a stunning turn of events in Maharashtra, BJP's Devendra Fadnavis on Saturday returned as Chief Minister propped up by Ajit Pawar, who was made his deputy, just hours after the new alliance of Shiv Sena, the NCP and the Congress reached a consensus that Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray will be their chief ministerial candidate.
The Shiv Sena approached the Supreme Court against the "arbitrary and malafide actions/decisions" of Maharashtra governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari of swearing in Fadnavis.
Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar were sworn in by Koshyari at 8 am at a hush hush ceremony here after dramatic midnight developments, leading to the lifting of the President's rule in Maharashtra.
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Nothing wrong in MLAs aspiring for ministerial position: K'taka HM Parameshwara
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Bengaluru (PTI): Amid a group of ruling Congress MLAs camping in Delhi with a cabinet rejig demand for their inclusion, Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara on Monday said there was nothing wrong in legislators aspiring for ministerial positions.
He asserted that experienced MLAs were capable of handling such responsibilities.
His remarks came a day after senior and first-time MLAs stepped up lobbying efforts in the national capital with the party high command, seeking a cabinet reshuffle and greater representation.
"There is nothing wrong in them asking for it (ministerial position)," Parameshwara, a senior Congress leader, said
He added that the MLAs, some of who have been elected thrice, are capable to take up the ministerial positions.
He maintained that the final call on any cabinet reshuffle rests with the party high command.
"Our Chief Minister (Siddaramaiah), the high command, and our party (state) president (DK Shivakumar) decide about reshuffle. These three sit together and take a decision," he said.
The minister also indicated that the established procedure for cabinet formation was likely being followed.
"Earlier too, when I was the (state Congress) president, during cabinet formation, the Pradesh Congress Committee president, the Congress Legislative Party (CLP) leader, and our in-charge general secretaries would take decisions that would then be presented before our AICC president, approval would be obtained, and then it would be announced," he said.
He added that even today the same procedure is followed.
Responding to questions on whether senior ministers would make way for newcomers, Parameshwara said they would abide by the party's decision.
"If the high command decides then we have to accept it. There is no question of not accepting it," he said.
Stressing on party discipline, he added, "Whether it is me, Transport Minister Ramalinga Reddy, or Energy Minister K J George, we all are seniors. If they (high command) decide that we should be replaced and make changes, then there is no question of us opposing it."
Clarifying that discussions were limited to a possible cabinet reshuffle, he said decisions on leadership matters were entirely in the hands of the high command.
He said the discussions were limited only to the Cabinet rejig and not changing the party state president, a post being held by Deputy Chief Minister Shivakumar for the past six years.
"Right now we are discussing cabinet reshuffle, not about the party president. All such matters are left to the high command," he said.
Recalling his own appointment as state Congress president in the past, Parameshwara said he had not lobbied for the post. "When I was made president, I did not lobby for it. Our leader Sonia Gandhi took the decision. It came as a surprise to me. I had not asked for it," he said.
On Sunday, several senior MLAs travelled to Delhi to press for a cabinet reshuffle, while first-time legislators renewed their demand for representation, seeking at least five berths in the Siddaramaiah-led ministry.
The push for a rejig comes amid internal rumblings within the ruling party and speculation over leadership issues, even as the high command is yet to take a final call.
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