Moves by NCP, Congress, BJP leave Shiv Sena guessing

New Delhi, Nov 20: The party that remains the most confused in Maharashtra today is the Shiv Sena. The party has been given no clarity about the formation of the government by the Congress and NCP, while the BJP has said a flat no to its demands.

This has led to some of the MLAs of the Shiv Sena getting edgy and many still feel that the deal with the BJP would have been a better one. However, the deal with the BJP is stuck on the 50:50 condition, which the Sena has been insistent on.

The BJP, on the other hand, has made it clear that there shall be no such deal. A source tells OneIndia that there are still some within the Sena who are hopeful that the BJP may come around and go ahead with the deal. When asked about this, a top BJP source said, "nothing doing."

On the other hand, the NCP's Sharad Pawar remains as cryptic as ever. When asked about the Shiv Sena claiming that talks are on with his party, Pawar quipped, 'really?' The Shiv Sena has called for a meeting of its MLAs to be held on Friday. Many MLAs have remained apprehensive about the future and the meeting is a way of assuring them.

Some Sena MLAs feel that the BJP is cozying up to the NCP. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had a word of praise for the NCP MPs in the Rajya Sabha and this has only added further to the speculation. Modi had praised MPs of the BJD and NCP for their behaviour in the Rajya Sabha. The BJP, however, says that not too much should be read into it.

A crucial meeting of the NCP and Congress is scheduled for today. The leaders would discuss further on the common minimum programme. Sonia Gandhi is not very keen on the alliance with the Shiv Sena. Sources say that this meeting would discuss the CMP further and differences are likely to be ironed out.