President's Rule Should End In Maharashtra, Says NCP’s Nawab Malik After Core Committee Meeting

Nationalist Congress Party’s core committee met on Sunday in Pune and decided that President's Rule should end in Maharashtra. Party leader Nawab Malik said that party leaders arrived at the conclusion after the meeting that an alternate government should be formed in the state and a final decision in this will be taken after NCP chief Sharad Pawar’s meeting with Congress interim president Sonia Gandhi.

 

“We have decided that the next decision will be taken only after a 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,” Malik said after the meet.

 

The scheduled meet between Pawar and Sonia to discuss a possible alliance with the Shiv Sena in Maharashtra was postponed after the NCP core committee meeting was convened. Earlier, sources in both the parties had said that Pawar and Gandhi may meet on Sunday.

 

According to reports, the core committee discussed portfolio allocation in the possible coalition government of NCP, Congress and Shiv Sena.

 

Pawar will also meet senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel to discuss government formation. "Pawar and other NCP leaders will be meeting Congress leaders on Tuesday. In that meeting, the Congress will decide whether it will be part of the government or will support from outside," NCP chief spokesperson Nawab Malik had said.

 

Allies Congress and NCP have worked out a common minimum program with the Sena for government formation. Maharashtra is under President's rule since November 12 after the BJP-Sena alliance fell apart over the issue of sharing of the chief minister's post.