Shiv Sena MLA Says He will ‘Smash Heads, Break Legs’ of Poachers Ahead of Maharashtra Govt Formation

New Delhi: Amid finalisation of the “architecture of alliance” between Congress, NCP and Shiv Sena ahead of government formation in Maharashtra, a Shiv Sena MLA on Thursday threatened to “smash the head” of anybody who tries to poach his fellow representatives through bribery or blackmail.

MLA Abdul Sattar, who represents the Sillod assembly constituency in Aurangabad district, warned former ally BJP against poaching or purchasing the elected representatives. “Our party is not some retail shop to buy MLAs from. If anybody tries to poach our MLAs, we will smash his head and break his legs too. However, the Sena will also summon an ambulance for the person and arrange for his medical treatment," he was quoted as saying by the ANI.

Sattar’s statement came on a day when Maharashtra appeared headed for a non-BJP dispensation with Congress leader Prithviraj Chavan asserting his party and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) have "complete unanimity" on all issues concerning government formation and will hold talks with the Shiv Sena on Friday to "finalise the architecture of the alliance".

The Congress and the NCP will hold talks with the Sena in Mumbai on Friday as well as their other pre-poll allies -- Peasants Workers Party, Samajwadi Party, Swabhimani Paksh and CPI(M) -- the former Maharashtra chief minister told reporters after another round of talks between senior leaders of his party and the NCP.

Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray and his MLA-son Aaditya met Sharad Pawar in Mumbai late on Thursday night after the NCP chief returned from Delhi. The meeting took place at Pawar's residence 'Silver Oak' in South Mumbai.

Sources said the three parties are likely to make a formal announcement on Friday to join hands to take a shot at power in the state. They are then likely to send separate letters to Maharashtra Governor BS Koshyari mentioning their decision to come together to form a government, said a source.

Thackeray on Friday will address a meeting of party MLAs and senior leaders, which is expected to deliberate on the party's line of action in the backdrop of the three main non-BJP parties making efforts to combine, said a Sena leader.

Congress leaders Ahmed Patel, Mallikarjun Kharge and KC Venugopal will go to Mumbai on Friday for a meeting with the Sena and the NCP on the modalities of government formation, sources said.

For the better part of this week, Delhi has been the centre of marathon meetings between the Congress and the NCP, including their respective presidents Sonia Gandhi and Sharad Pawar, to work out a suitable formula and ideological harmony before forging an alliance with the Sena, a party whose core Hindutva ideology is poles apart from the duo's.