Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde denies meeting NCP's Sharad Pawar; 'Don't believe rumours'

As a picture of Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) supremo Sharad Pawar with Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde is doing rounds on social media, the Maharashtra Chief Minister cleared that 'no such meeting has taken place'. Taking to the microblogging site Twitter, the rebel Shiv Sena leader warned against spreading or believing rumours, and as part of the clarification shared a screenshot of the NCP Twitter handle, which shows that the viral picture dates back to 11 November 2021. 

Sharad Pawar dials Eknath Shinde

In the backdrop of the Legislative Council elections, the MLAs of Shiv Sena led by Eknath Shinde went incommunicado as part of a rebellion against the Sena and the majority of the party MLAs sided with him, which led to the collapse of the Maha Vikas Aghadi government. Uddhav Thackeray resigned as the Chief Minister on June 29, and on the very next day, i.e., on June 30, Shinde took oath as the CM. 

Minutes after Eknath Shinde took the oath of office and secrecy, Pawar had dialled him. Pawar, talking about the brief call, had back then said that he congratulated Shinde on assuming office, and also reminded him that now he belonged to "not just one party, but the whole of Maharashtra". 

The government formed under CM Shinde, with Devendra Fadnavis as his Deputy, has not yet allocated portfolios among the rebel Shiv Sena and BJP MLAs. "Let us breathe properly. It was quite hectic for us (referring to political activities recently in the state). I and Devendra Fadnavis will sit and discuss cabinet portfolios and their allocation. We will also get the allocation vetted from national leaders of the BJP," Shinde had said, after winning the trust vote in the Assembly. 

In the 288-member House, 164 MLAs voted for the motion of confidence, while 99 voted against it. Three legislators abstained from voting, while 21 legislators, including Congress's Ashok Chavan and Vijay Wadettiwar, were absent.