Mumbai: Congress rebel and former Chief Minister Narayan Rane on Friday said his newly-formed Maharashtra Swabhiman Paksha will join the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA). “I have decided to be a part of the NDA for the development of the State and the Konkan region,” Mr. Rane said at a press conference in Sindudurg on Friday.
Dismissing speculation that he would be accommodated in the Union Cabinet, Mr. Rane said, “I will stay in Maharashtra till 2019,” hinting at contesting the Lok Sabha polls to be held that year. Mr Rane, who resigned from the Congress party about two weeks ago after a long-drawn tussle with its state and central leadership, had claimed three days ago that Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had invited him to join the NDA.
He quit the Congress, alleging that the party had reneged on its promise to make him the Chief Minister when he joined it in 2005 after quitting the Shiv Sena. Mr. Rane’s entry into the NDA, if approved by the BJP top brass, is likely to create fissures in the already volatile relations between Sena and the BJP.
Sena leaders have maintained silence over the developments and said they would comment on the developments only after they hear an official announcement from the BJP. Sources indicate that Mr Rane will be accommodated in the State Cabinet soon, and will be given either the Revenue or Public Works Department (PWD) portfolio, both being held presently by senior BJP leader Chandrakant Patil.
