Mumbai:
Nearly a month after the Shiv Sena opted to sit in the opposition, the Bharatiya Janata Party is preparing to welcome its former ally to join the Maharashtra government, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis indicated here on Thursday.
Fadnavis said the two parties, who were allies of 25 years before breaking apart weeks before the October 15 state assembly elections, will soon join hands together to run the state government.
"It is the opinion of all that the two parties should once again come together. The BJP is ready to take Shiv Sena along. For this, negotiations shall be resumed between the two parties from Friday," Fadnavis told media persons here.
The talks will be conducted by union Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and Maharashtra PWD Minister Chandrakant Patil on behalf of the BJP, he said.
"A couple of days ago, I spoke to (Shiv Sena president) Uddhav Thackeray in this regard over phone. Accordingly, we are confident that we shall run the state government together," Fadnavis said.
Earlier this week, Patil indicated that the BJP and the Sena would ally again to run a coalition government in the state.
The two parties split Sep 15, just three weeks before the Maharshtra assembly elections which threw up a fractured verdict in the 288-member legislature last month.