NCP minus Bhujbal welcome in NDA:Sena

Giving a twist to the efforts to forge a political coalition, Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray yesterday said he was not averse to the Sharad Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) minus former Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Chaggan Bhujbal joining the National Democratic Alliance (NDA).

Bhujbal, a prominent NCP leader, quit the Shushil Kumar Shinde government recently following reports about his alleged involvement in the Telgi stamp paper scam.

During his tenure in the government, Bhujbal is learnt to have initiated police investigations against Thackeray.

Thackeray's statement marks a significant turn in the state politics where the NCP and the Shiv Sena have been vying to emerge as regional political parties.

Thackeray's statement has come in wake of efforts by Deputy Prime Minister LK Advani to persuade the Sena chief to make room for Pawar's party within the NDA.

Thackeray, however, made it clear that he would not forget his old "enmity" easily. "It is impossible," he said at his residence in the suburban Bandra when asked if he would allow Bhujbal to be part of the proposed alliance.

Though there was no official word from the NCP, Thackeray's rider is being seen as a major embarrassment for Pawar if the latter is keen to find a place in the NDA.

Though, Advani met Thackeray to discuss the Lok Sabha poll dates, the issue of allowing the NCP into the NDA also cropped up. Thackeray said the issue came up for a while during his talks with Advani but the talks remained inconclusive.

"I will have to talk to Uddhav," the Sena chief said referring to his son and executive president of the party. "Iwill arrive at a decision after consulting Uddhav and other Sena leaders," Thackeray added.