Maharashtra Congress chief Nana Patole after the party meeting in Mumbai said that If time comes, they can provide support to the Maha Vikas Aghadi govt from outside also.
INC Leader Ashok Chavan, after the meeting, said, "To stop the BJP (from coming to power) in 2019, Maha Vikas Aghadi was constituted on a common minimum program. Congress still sticks to that and our support for Maha Vikas Aghadi continues."
"They (BJP) wanted to create instability and destroy Shiv Sena so that they can emerge no. 1 party in the BMC polls. This operation is being orchestrated from Delhi. Devendra Fadnavis is going to Delhi to take instructions & logistical support," Maharashtra Congress' Prithviraj Chavan said.
Whereas, NCP leader Chhagan Bhujbal after the party meeting in Mumbai, said, "We stand with CM Uddhav Thackeray & will support him till the last moment... We have numbers for the govt as no MLA of Shiv Sena has resigned nor Shiv Sena has expelled anyone from the party."
Maharashtra deputy CM Ajit Pawar also said that the NCP will stand with Uddhav Thackeray till the end.
Meanwhile, amid the deepening political turmoil in Maharashtra, state Congress president Nana Patole on Thursday accused Deputy Chief Minister and senior NCP leader Ajit Pawar of harassing Congress legislators and ministers by stalling their development funds.
Patole's statement was in reference to some rebel Shiv Sena MLAs targeting the NCP for denying development funds to them.
NCP and Congress are part of the Shiv Sena-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government. Ajit Pawar is the state finance minister.
"Ajit Pawar has harassed Congress MLAs and ministers also. We opposed this tactics saying the government was for the welfare of people. Our opposition to such tactic was not political," Patole said.
When asked about Patole's allegation, senior NCP leader and minister Chhagan Bhujbal played down his remarks saying, "Even within parties, leaders complain against each other. So this is not anything that can be taken seriously." The MVA government is on the brink of collapse after Shiv Sena minister Eknath Shinde rebelled against the party and went to Guwahati in Assam with some rebel MLAs.
Rebel Sena MLA Sanjay Shirsat has written a letter to CM Thackeray claiming that Shinde took the step of going against the party leadership as Sena MLAs, who faced "humilitation" for the last two-and-a-half years, persuaded him to do so. In the letter, Shirsat also said Shinde opened doors for the party MLAs to listen to their grievances, issues about development work in their constituencies and related fund, and problems with allies Congress and NCP.
