Unrest is brewing in the Shiv Sena led by Maharashtra chief minister Eknath Shinde in the wake of the rebel Ajit Pawar-led NCP faction’s inclusion in the BJP-led NDA coalition in Maharashtra.
Shinde, who is the chief leader of the Shiv Sena - of which he has snatched control from then chief minister Uddhav Thackeray - is having a tough time explaining his group.
Of the 56 Shiv Sena MLAs, Shinde commands a strength of 40 while he also has the support of 10 independents and smaller parties.
Ajit Pawar is now the new deputy chief minister and has eight other ministers in the Cabinet while Shiv Sena including Shinde has a strength of 10 and BJP too has the same strength with deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis at the helm of affairs.