Mumbai, November 26: Devendra Fadnavis, who resigned as Chief Minister three days after taking the oath, on Tuesday said that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will work as an effective opposition in Maharashtra assembly. Addressing a press conference hours after the Supreme Court ordered a floor test in the state, Devendra Fadnavis came down heavily on the Shiv Sena and accused the former ally of being power-hungry. Ajit Pawar Resigns as Maharashtra Deputy CM.

"The hunger for power is such that now Shiv Sena leaders are even willing to ally with Sonia Gandhi," Fadnavis said. Making a direct attack at Uddhav Thackeray, he said that the Shiv Sena did not respond to BJP's repeated calls for talks over government formation. "People who never stepped outside Matoshree (Thackeray residence) to meet anyone were going door to door to make a government with NCP and Congress," he said. Maharashtra Power Tussle: NCP, Shiv Sena, Congress Show Unity, Sharad Pawar Says 'Will Bring More Than 162 MLAs During Floor Test'.

Fadnavis said that while the mandate was Mahayuti, the bigger mandate was for the BJP. "In elections, a clear majority was given to Mahayuti and BJP got maximum 105 seats. We contested with Shiv Sena, but this mandate was for BJP because BJP won 70 percent seats out of all seats we contested," he added.

Earlier today, the Supreme Court passed an interim order to conduct a floor test in the Maharashtra assembly on Wednesday. The apex court gave its verdict on a joint petition filed by Congress-NCP-Shiv Sena against the decision of Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari to invite the BJP to form a government.

In a stunning turn of events, Fadnavis on November 23 returned as chief minister propped up by Ajit Pawar, who was made his deputy, just hours after the new alliance of Shiv Sena, the NCP and the Congress reached a consensus that Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray will be their chief ministerial candidate.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Nov 26, 2019 04:11 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).