What if NCP boycotts the floor test in Maharashtra

New Delhi, Nov 25: A floor test in Maharashtra is certain. The Supreme Court would pronounce its order on Tuesday on a batch of petitions that sought a direction to declare the invitation by the Governor to Devendra Fadnavis as illegal. The petitioners also sought for a direction to conduct an early floor test.

The BJP says it has the requisite numbers to prove its majority. A similar claim has also been made by the Shiv Sena. The NCP led by Sharad Pawar has claimed that none of the 54 MLAs are with Ajit Pawar.

When Ajit Pawar handed over the letter of support to the BJP, he was the head of the legislative party. He was however replaced by Jayant Patil after the switch over. Patil too has handed over a letter claiming the support of the NCP MLAs to the Governor.

The floor test would determine how many NCP MLAs are with Ajit Pawar. It is certain that the NCP would split during the trust vote. There is every chance that some may vote in favour of the government or may even boycott the proceedings.

If all the 54 NCP MLAs boycott the trust vote then the strength of the 288 member House comes down to 234. In this event, the magic number would be 118. The BJP with 105 MLAs and the support of 15 independent MLAs would have 120 in the House, which would then be two past the halfway mark.

The BJP has claimed that it has the support of 170 MLAs. The BJP cites these numbers with the support of both the NCP MLAs and independents.