Shiv Sena (UBT) chief and MVA ally Uddhav Thackeray met with Maharashtra Chief Minister Devender Fadnavis and Speaker Rahul Narwekar on Tuesday. Thackeray's meeting with the Speaker sparked speculation that he may be softening his stance against the ruling Mahayuti to get the Leader of Opposition (LoP) post in the Assembly.
When asked whether the LoP post was discussed during their meeting, Rahul Narwekar said he had not received any proposal. "If any proposal is put up before me, I will consider the same in accordance with the rules and procedures of the state assembly," he said while speaking to reporters.
Narwekar said it was a courtesy meeting by Uddhav Thackeray. "Uddhav is the group leader of Shiv Sena (UBT) and a lot of group leaders have called on the speaker and in the same note, he visited the Speaker's office."
Maharashtra has 288-member Assembly. At least 28 MLAs are necessary for a party to claim the LoP position. However, no opposition party could cross this threshold in the recently concluded elections. As per the results, Shiv Sena (UBT) got the highest 20 seats, followed by Congress 16, and Sharad Pawar's NCP 10.
After meeting the chief minister, Uddhav Thackeray said he expects normal politics in Maharashtra. "I could not win the election. Those people won the election and their government was formed. Decisions in the interest of Maharashtra are expected. We will keep asking them through the public how they won this election."
When asked to comment on Thackeray's meeting with Fadnavis, Maharashtra Congress chief Nana Patole said there was no issue with the meeting. "Devendra Fadnavis is the chief minister. We also meet him and now he (Uddhav Thackeray) has met him, what is the issue with that?"
Worli MLA Aaditya Thackeray, son of Uddhav Thackeray, described the meeting as a "step forward". "Today our Party Chief Uddhav Thackeray met CM Devendra Fadnavis and Assembly Speaker. This is a step forward. While working for the Maharashtra government, both (the ruling party and opposition) should show political maturity to work together for the country and state’s benefit."