Cong-NCP stalemate on; NCP core committee holds meeting

Even as the stalemate continues over seat sharing with its alliance partner Congress ahead of Maharashtra Assembly polls, the Sharad Pawar-led NCP's core committee met this morning to discuss its future course of action.

The meeting, which was attended by Pawar and senior party leader Praful Patel, was being held at Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar's official residence, 'Deogiri'. NCP spokesman Nawab Malik said it had been convened to deliberate on the impasse over seat sharing.

Senior Congress leader Narayan Rane had said in Nashik yesterday that NCP had raised its demands, including for the chief minister's post, for half the term should the alliance win power.

"These are unreasonable demands," Congress sources said, adding that a proposed meeting last night did not take place as NCP did not get back with its decision on the proposal put forward by the Congress.

Both chief minister Prithviraj Chavan and state Congress president Manikrao Thakre had refused to give details of a meeting with NCP leaders which was held yesterday morning.

Thakre had said that Congress should not be blamed if the 15-year old coalition breaks up while Chavan had stated that the party was ready with its contingency plan for fielding candidates in the 114 constituencies which were contested by NCP in 2009.

NCP has rejected Congress's proposal that it put up candidates for 124 seats, or 10 more than the 114 which it had contested in 2009.