A delegation of senior Congress leaders from Maharashtra on Friday briefed party president Sonia Gandhi on the current political situation in the State, where the Shiv Sena and the BJP have not been able to resolve their differences over the leadership issue.
“We had a threadbare discussion on the election results, different regions, the narrow losses in some seats. We also discussed the political situation and briefed the Congress president and the central leadership about the current situation in Maharashtra,” former Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan told reporters outside the 10 Janpath residence of Ms. Gandhi.
Mr. Chavan as well as other leaders of the delegation refused to take a categorical position on the question of supporting the Shiv Sena-led alliance to stop the BJP.
“We have briefed the president on the situation that exists as of today,” Maharashtra Congress chief Balasaheb Thorat said, asked if the Congress was resigned to sitting in the Opposition.
Unlike the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) that has repeatedly talked of sitting in the Opposition, Congress leaders seem to have left the final decision to Ms. Gandhi as the party in Maharashtra is divided on the issue of support to the Sena.
Ms. Gandhi has convened a meeting of Opposition leaders on Monday to discuss the current political situation in which NCP leader Sharad Pawar is expected to attend. Sources didn’t rule out a meeting between Ms. Gandhi and Mr. Pawar.
