"We will keep an eye on the situation in Maharashtra. Congress and NCP leaders will hold further talks on the future course of action," he added.
The state has total 8,98,39,600 voters, including 1,06,76,013 in the age group of 18 to 25 years. A total of 6.5 lakh polling personnel have been deployed at 96,661 polling booths across the state.
NCP MLA Anil Patil has expressed faith in the leadership of Sharad Pawar, indicating his return to the party fold.
The Congress questioned the Maharashtra governor for the "arbitrary" allotment of time to the Nationalist Congress Party, the Shiv Sena and the Bharatiya Janata Party to prove support for government formation.
Buoyed by the results of exit polls that gave the Bharatiya Janata Party an edge in the Maharashtra assembly elections, state unit chief Devendra Fadnavis said the party would form the government in the state. In an interview, Fadnavis, a leading contender for the chief minister's post, spoke on the party's performance.
Minister Jayant Patil said the Shiv Sena-Congress-NCP government favoured granting relief to those who were falsely implicated.
More than the Uddhav Thackeray-led ministry, two coordination committees will approve and disapprove big projects, contracts and political decisions.
Going solo in civic, local body elections won't impact coalition state government.
The 15-year-old Congress-Nationalist Congress Party alliance in Maharashtra broke up on Thursday with the regional party deciding to contest next month's assembly polls on its own and pulling out of the government, setting the stage for its fall.
Maharashtra Congress leader Narayan Rane on Friday said the first list of the party's candidates for next month's assembly polls would be announced on September 25 as he backed the continuation of an alliance with Nationalist Congress Party.
Thackeray held talks with Thorat, former state chief minister Ashok Chavan and senior Congress leader Manikrao Thakare at a suburban hotel.
Shah said that no one objected when Prime Minister Narendra Modi and he publicly said that Devendra Fadnavis would be the chief minister if the BJP-Shiv Sena alliance wins the assembly polls in Maharashtra.
The street-fighter attitude is what keeps Rane going even at 69. The expectation is -- at least in the BJP camp -- that he will be itching for a battle royale with the Shiv Sena in its bastions.
'My feeling is that these parties will not learn their lesson despite their electoral drubbing. They cannot put forward a leader. They have no record of improving their constituents' lives by providing basic services. All they offer is their "'secularism",' says T V R Shenoy.
By ending the Shiv Sena's political untouchability, the Congress is creating a level playing ground for itself in the political battle of Hindu identity, explains Sheela Bhatt.
A day after the Bharatiya Janata Party emerged as the single largest party in Maharashtra, Shiv Sena on Monday took a swipe at Narendra Modi, saying the "wave" seen during the campaign lost its force even before reaching the shores and expressed doubts over survival of the state amid a hung House.
If there is unity in the Opposition, it is only about regional parties other than the DMK not wanting Rahul Gandhi or any other Congress leader for prime minister, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
The move came at a time when deliberations between the Congress, the NCP and the Shiv Sena seemingly reached the final stage on Friday.
The Uddhav Thackeray-led regime is performing a veritable balancing act. The lack of coordinated strategies, the weakening authority of the leadership, growing disgruntlement among its constituents, the inability to set a narrative, and poor damage control mechanisms have seen it lurch from one crisis to another, reports Dhaval Kulkarni
An estimated 47 per cent voters exercised their franchise on Sunday in the Kalyan-Dombivli Municipal Corporation polls
'The Congress should have accepted our demands.' 'Gone are the days when it could decide how many crumbs to throw at us.' 'Now, we make the demands.'
These MLAs were present when BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis and NCP's Ajit Pawar were sworn in as chief minister and deputy chief minister at Raj Bhavan. Both the MLAs said they were with the Nationalist Congress Party and expressed solidarity with its president.
Pawar, who at 30 became the youngest chief minister of Maharashtra in 1978, will have to do a lot of heavy-lifting in the Maharashtra assembly polls, due by October, after severe setbacks in the Lok Sabha polls, reports Sunil Gatade.
The Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana has joined the saffron alliance in Maharashtra. Will the votes it brings to the table loosen the political hold of the entrenched Maratha-dominated sugar barons of the NCP-Congress in western Maharashtra?
Senior Nationalist Congress Party leader and Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Saturday said decision as to when to hold the meeting on seat-sharing for Maharashtra Assembly polls will be taken after consulting the state Congress chief Manikrao Thakre.
The Congress protested vociferously both inside and outside Parliament on Monday against the political developments in Maharashtra as it stalled proceedings and accused the Bharatiya Janata Party of "murdering democracy" in the state.
The new chief minister will be one of the most closely watched politicians in the country in these media-driven times.
'I hope that by seeing us in such huge numbers the government will get scared and agree to our demands.'
Even as its chief Uddhav Thackeray accompanied the Prime Minister for 'jal pujan' ceremony of Chhatrapati Shivaji memorial, Shiv Sena on Saturday appeared unhappy with ally BJP, alleging that it has "hijacked" the occasion to take political benefit.
Sena chief has now put ball in BJP's court indicating that Shiv Sena's tiger is back to roar. Sanjay Jog reports
'The BJP government, before the polls, tried to gather information about what and with whom these (NCP-Congress) leaders were talking to'
New government will have to mobilise money to complete pending irrigation, infra projects
Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad today dared the Bharatiya Janata Partyto declare its chief ministerial candidate for the upcoming Bihar assembly elections.
President's Rule can be revoked before the six-month period if a situation emerges for formation of a stable government.
'Over the years he has been getting a feeling of being sidelined by his uncle.'
Further hardening his stand on seat-sharing with Bharatiya Janata Party, Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray on Monday said he has rejected the saffron ally's demand for contesting 135 seats in Maharashtra assembly polls and hinted at going it alone, saying "everything has an alternative".
With an eye on assembly elections after severe drubbing in Lok Sabha polls, the Congress-Nationalist Congress Party government on Wednesday approved 16 per cent reservation for Marathas and five per cent for Muslims in government jobs and education institutions.
The return of a BJP-Sena regime after a love-hate war and gap of 15 years, demise of senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader Gopinath Munde, collapse of Congress-Nationalisy Congress Party alliance and rising cases of farmers' suicides dominated Maharashtra's political landscape in 2014.
"If we had the numbers, we wouldn't have waited for anyone. The Congress and the NCP didn't cross the 100 mark...we will work as a responsible opposition," Pawar said.
In 2014, young Muslims became Owaisi fans. But five years of BJP rule and a weakening Opposition have drawn older Muslims too towards the AIMIM chief. Not enough, though.
