Mumbai: The Uddhav Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government of the Shiv Sena-NCP-Congress alliance may face their floor test in the Assembly on Saturday, sources said. The floor test is "most likely" to be held on Saturday, the Vidhan Bhawan sources said. Earlier, Governor B K Koshyari had asked Thackeray to prove the majority by December 3.
Moreover, senior NCP leader Dilip Walse-Patil was appointed as pro-tem Speaker of Maharashtra Assembly on Friday ahead of the floor test. NCP sources confirmed that Patil has been appointed as the pro-tem Speaker.
Ambegaon MLA, Patil, serving his seventh term as a legislator, replaced the BJP's Kalidas Kolambkar, who was appointed as pro-tem Speaker a few days ago when the MLAs were administered the oath.
Additionally, NCP leader Ajit Pawar said on Friday that as per the agreement between constituents of the MVA, his party is supposed to get the post of deputy chief minister, while the Speaker would be from the Congress.
Pawar's statement followed reports that the Congress is now demanding a deputy chief minister's post as well, and is ready to give up the Speaker's post to the NCP. Meanwhile, in his first major decision after assuming office as the Chief Minister, Thackeray ordered a stay on the Aarey car-shed work on Friday. He held a cabinet meeting with senior bureaucrats followed by a press conference where he said, "I have stayed Aarey car-shed work, not a single tree leaf will be cut till further notice."
He clarified that the stay is on Aarey car-shed and not on the metro development, adding that the project would resume after it is reviewed.