Devendra Fadnavis, Ajit Pawar resign hours after SC orders floor test

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis of Maharashtra announced his resignation on Tuesday afternoon before a floor test could be held to test the strength of his BJP-led government's position.

Fadnavis said at a press conference that his deputy chief minister, Ajit Pawar of the NCP, had also stepped down -- in fact, he blamed the fall of his government on Pawar's resignation, which he said had deprived it of a majority.

The Fadnavis administration was sworn in early on Saturday morning against the run of play: a trio of opposition parties -- the Shiv Sena, the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and the Congress -- had looked set to claim power after days of hectic parleys.

A stunned, still sleepy-eyed nation learned that Devendra Fadnavis's deputy would be Ajit Pawar, the nephew of NCP chief Sharad Pawar.

The Fadnavis-Ajit Pawar government has lasted all of three days, plus a few hours.

'DON'T WANT TO BREAK ANY PARTY'

Devendra Fadnavis said at the press meet that he didn't want to break any party, and that the BJP didn't want to indulge in horse-trading.

He said that in Opposition, the BJP would become the voice of the people, and expressed doubt that a Shiv Sena-NCP-Congress government would be stable.

The weeks following a Maharashtra state election held last month have been rich in drama. First the BJP and the Shiv Sena, who fought the polls together, fell out. President's Rule was enforced on November 12 when parties in their individual capacity couldn't form a government.

Then, just when it looked like the Sena-NCP-Congress combine was on the cusp of power, Fadnavis and Pawar were sworn in.

Today, the Supreme Court ordered the Fadnavis government to face a floor test by 5 pm on November 27.

But now, that won't be necessary.