BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis resigned as chief minister on Tuesday, ahead of Wednesday’s Supreme Court-ordered floor test, admitting he did not have the numbers shortly after his deputy and NCP leader Ajit Pawar quit in yet another dramatic twist to the month-long Maharashtra political imbroglio.

With the resignation of Fadnavis, who was sworn in by Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari in a hush-hush early morning ceremony just last Saturday after stunning midnight developments that started with Ajit Pawar’s rebellion against his uncle Sharad Pawar, the Shiv Sena said its chief Uddhav Thackeray will be the new chief minister heading a post-poll alliance.

Besides the Sena, the alliance that calls itself the Maha Vikas Aghadi comprises the NCP and the Congress.

A senior official from Vidhan Bhavan said that with Fadnavis quitting, there was no need to hold a floor test in the Assembly on Wednesday.

“Instead, the governor may invite the second largest party, the Shiv Sena, to stake claim for government formation,” he said. The governor would require a joint statement from the Sena, NCP and Congress along with signatures of their MLAs.

Fadnavis handed over his resignation to the Governor after he announced his decision at a crowded news conference in Mumbai. “Fadnavis called on the governor and tendered his resignation,” said a statement from Raj Bhavan.

“Ajit had supported the BJP as leader of the 54-member NCP legislature party and with his resignation earlier in the day, the government has lost majority,” said Fadnavis, hours after the Supreme Court ordered a floor test in the state Assembly on Wednesday for the BJP leader to prove his majority.

The court said there was a “possibility of horse trading” in case of a delay in floor test.

The Governor had on Saturday given 14 days time to Fadnavis to prove his majority, the apex court was told on Monday. “We don't have majority after Ajit Pawar's resignation as deputy chief minister,” Fadnavis said on a day of fast paced political and legal developments.

The top court also directed that voting in the Assembly would be telecast live and would not be held on the basis of secret ballot. It also made it absolutely clear that a pro­-tem Speaker would have to be appointed to administer the oath to the newly elected members of the House on Wednesday itself by 5.00 pm prior to holding the floor test.

Pro-tem speaker named

BJP's Kalidas Kolambkar was appointed as pro-tem Speaker by the Governor. “In a situation wherein, if the floor test is delayed, there is a possibility of horse trading, it becomes incumbent upon the Court to act to protect democratic values. An immediate floor test, in such a case, might be the most effective mechanism to do so,” said a bench comprising Justices N.V. Ramana, Ashok Bhushan and Sanjiv Khanna.

The BJP's efforts to cobble a majority hoping that Ajit Pawar would be able to enlist the support of a majority of the MLAs of the NCP came a cropper after almost all the 54 legislators stood by his uncle Sharad.

The numbers

Maha Vikas Aghadi, the three-party combine, paraded 162 MLAs in an unprecedented show of strength at a luxury hotel in Mumbai on Monday night indicating that the numbers were stacked heavily against the BJP.

In the 288-member Assembly, the BJP is the single-largest party with 105 MLAs, followed by the Shiv Sena (56), the NCP (54) and the Congress (44).

The combine's tally was 154. The majority mark is 145.

‘No horse-trading’

Fadnavis said the BJP would become the voice of the people as a responsible Opposition. “We won't indulge in horse-trading,” he added.

Asked if he thought Ajit Pawar extending support to the BJP was a strategy of Sharad Pawar, Fadnavis said, “Sharad Pawar will be able to comment on it.”

“Ajit Pawar told me he was quitting due to personal reasons,” Fadnavis said, adding that the Assembly election mandate was more for the BJP than the Shiv Sena.

Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut told reporters after a meeting of the Sena-NCP-Congress alliance leaders that Uddhav Thackeray would be the chief minister for five years.

Another Sena leader Eknath Shinde claimed that during the floor test, the Maha Vikas Aghadi would have the support of “170 legislators”.

Most of the issues among the Sena, NCP and Congress had been sorted out, a senior NCP leader commented on the condition of anonymity. “I don't think the three parties would need any more time to stake claim for government formation,” he said.