Shiv Sena not to support BJP government during Maharashtra trust vote

MUMBAI: Hours before Devendra Fadnavis government faces trust vote, the Shiv Sena today said it will vote against it in the Maharashtra Assembly.

"Shiv Sena has decided to sit in opposition. We will vote against the trust vote," senior Sena leader Ramdas Kadam told reporters at Vidhan Bhawan here.

"We have lost faith in them (BJP)," Kadam said. After Sena president Uddhav Thackeray addressed a meeting of party legislators here last night, Sena sources had said he will announce the party's stand on trust vote today.

Meanwhile, the BJP said the decision of Sena, with which it had an alliance for 25 years in Maharashtra, was not in the state's interest.

"The Sena's decision is against the interests of Maharashtra," state finance minister Sudhir Mungantiwar said.

Kadam said the BJP had requested the Shiv Sena to support it during the trust vote.

"We declined. If we don't get the Leader of Opposition post, we will protest outside the Speaker's chamber," he said.

Kadam and Milind Narvekar, an aide of Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray, earlier today met Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis.

The appointment of Leader of Opposition is listed in the day's agenda of the Assembly session.

Uddhav had earlier written a letter to state Assembly secretary seeking the post of Leader of Opposition for its Legislature Party leader Eknath Shinde while pointing out that Sena is the second largest party in the House with 63 MLAs.

To a question on why the Sena had withdrawn its candidate for the Assembly Speaker's post, Kadam said the Speaker's election is normally unanimous and unopposed.