Mumbai: In anticipation of an apex court decision, in all probability recommending a floor test, deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar was summoned to CM Devendra Fadnavis' residence around 10:15pm.
The two leaders took stock of their numbers, which have diminished since Ajit attempted his somersault. The online buzz was that he has decided to put in his papers, realising that the numbers are stacked against the BJP.
According to sources, Amit Shah has appointed Nitin Gadkari and Piyush Goyal to sort out the political mess. These leaders will join Devendra Fadnavis and Chandrakant Patil in handling the turbulence.
Vinay Kore, an independent MLA supporting BJP, after meeting with Ajit Pawar made an interesting comment. He said: "We can see that two factions have formed in NCP. We will get to know during the floor test who has the bigger faction, how many people are with Ajit Pawar, how many are with Sharad Pawar, and whether those two are in this together."
But Uddhav seems to have no doubts about Sharad Pawar. He told a gathering of Sena MLAs at hotel Lalit: ‘‘The RSS is still trying to contact us, but it is too late now. "We need not worry as Sharad Pawar is standing firmly with us. All three of us are fighting this together."
NCP leader Dhananjay Munde, who was also with Ajit during his oath-taking ceremony, has said he is with the uncle and would remain with the party. In a tweet, Munde said, "I am with party, I am with Pawar saheb. Please don’t spread rumours."
The buzz was that he is a BJP ‘Trojan horse’ in the NCP camp, a claim which was debunked by Munde.
