BJP looks to drive a hard bargain with 8 members, give Shinde faction four

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THE BJP and Eknath Shinde faction have begun the process of shortlisting candidates for the governor’s nomination in the state legislative council. Of the 12 MLAs, BJP is making a hard bargain to retain eight and leave four for the Shinde faction. The jostle for more presentation from the Shinde camp is evident considering the pressure to accommodate larger aspirants, who have switched loyalties from Uddhav Thackeray Sena to the Shinde faction.

Sources in BJP said, “Whether it is the Cabinet formation or MLC seats it should be done in proportion. BJP with 106 MLAs is a larger party compared to the Shinde faction’s 50 MLAs (including 40 Sena rebels and 10 independents). Accordingly, out of total 12 MLC seats, BJP gets eight and the Shinde faction four. One seat here and there can take place at the eleventh hour.

The governor’s nomination to the state legislative council has been pending for the last two years. The Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government had twice cleared the list of 12 candidates in the Cabinet and proposed it to Governor Bhagat Singh Koshiyari. However, the governor did not give consent to the list. The nomination of MLCs has become a major bone of contention between the governor and the MVA government.