New Delhi, October 21
While the tussle over the Maharashtra chief ministership is yet to be resolved, the Congress remains a divided house on whether it should concede this post to the NCP or fight to keep it.
A section in the Congress believes its leadership should not press its demand for the top job and should instead leave it to the NCP as it does have more numbers. It is argued that by relinquishing the chief ministership, the Congress would be justified in claiming key portfolios which were held by the NCP in the outgoing government.
Besides AICC General Secretary Digvijay Singh and Union minister Prithviraj Chavan, several state leaders, including Vilasrao Deshmukh, are stated to be in favour of accepting the NCP demand.
According to the 1999 formula, the Congress had got the Chief Minister’s post since it was the single largest party. In return, the NCP had got key ministries like Home, Irrigation, Power, PWD and Energy. These portfolios,it is argued, actually helped the NCP ministers build their profile as these are all public dealing ministries.
On the other hand, a section of AICC leaders are arguing that the Congress would be decimated and taken over by the NCP if they are to hand over the Chief Minister’s post to a regional party. They cite the examples of Congress party’s falling graph in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. “The Congress cannot afford to let go of a major state like Maharashtra,” they point out.
Meanwhile, Mrs Alva along with AICC secretaries incharge of Maharashtra briefed Congress President about the Assembly polls. They are learnt to have pointed out that the Congress,NCP and the RPI had contested the elections as one unit under the Congress leadership. It was, therefore, only right that the Chief Minister’s post should be retained by the Congress,they felt. With one more independent MLA Madan Bhonsle pledging support to the Congress, taking the number to 10, the party felt further emoldened to press its claim.
