assembly-elections

Updated: Oct 29, 2019 13:17 IST

The back and forth between Shiv Sena and Bharatiya Janata Party over formation of a new government in Maharashtra continued on Tuesday.

Senior Shiv Sena leader and member of Parliament Sanjay Raut said that there are “other options” if the BJP continues to delay forming a government. “Uddhav Thackeray ji has said that we have other options too but we don’t want to do the sin of accepting that alternative. Shiv Sena has always done politics of truth, we are not hungry for power,” Raut was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.

BJP and Shiv Sena have a pre-poll alliance in Maharashtra. BJP contested in 164 seats of the 288-member assembly and won 105 while Sena contested 124 seats and won 56.

Raut also took a swipe at BJP’s alliance with Dushyant Chautala’s Jananayak Janata Party (JJP) to form a government in Haryana.

“There is no Dushyant (Chautala) here whose father is in jail. Here it’s us who do politics of ‘dharma and satya’, Sharad ji (Sharad Pawar) who created an environment against BJP, and Congress who will never go with BJP,” Raut added.

Also watch: Devendra Fadnavis, Sena leader meet Governor amid tussle

Manohar Lal Khattar was sworn in as Haryana chief minister for a second term on Sunday, Dushyant Chautala took oath as deputy chief minister. Dushyant’s father Ajay Chautala is lodged in the Tihar Jail after conviction in a teachers’ recruitment scam. Ajay Chutala attended Sunday’s swearing-in after being granted furlough for two weeks.

The BJP won 40 seats in the 90-member assembly while JJP won 10. The Congress won 31 seats.

After the election results were announced in Maharashtra, Sena has pushed for a “50-50” power-sharing formula. The regional party wants chief ministers from both sides with each having a two-and-half-year tenure.

Sena president Uddhav Thackeray has said that a power-sharing deal was agreed upon with BJP president Amit Shah and chief minister Devendra Fadnavis ahead of the Lok Sabha polls this year