MUMBAI: A section of NCP, which had taken the lead in persuading Uddhav Thackeray to form a non-BJP government, blamed ally

for Monday’s fiasco involving

.

Congress is dithering on supporting the Sena-led government as it feels that if the Sena-NCP and Congress comes to power, it will strengthen NCP and, in the months to come, Congress will be wiped out, said a senior NCP leader.

“We feel that Congress backed out at the last moment since it will help Sharad Pawar to widen his party’s base across the state. In the recent past, NCP’s mass base was dwindling, but after the assembly elections, it was found that it has made deeper inroads than ever before. Now, if Sena forms government with NCP and Congress, NCP will be the biggest beneficiary,’’ he said.

Indicating that Pawar has been slighted, he said: “Almost for the entire day, Sharad Pawar was camping in the Y B Chavan Centre with the hope that Congress will provide support for formation of government.” Pawar was told all along on Monday that Sonia was interacting with Congress leaders, including legislators from

, and that a positive decision will be taken soon. But late in the evening, AICC said it needed more discussions with NCP.

Senior leaders will meet on Tuesday to work out a strategy, and the leader is still hopeful of a Sena-NCP and Congress government. “Even if President’s Rule is imposed, we will stake claim to form government.” The leader felt Congress legislators are unhappy over the way the leadership tackled the situation. “We will not be surprised if Congress splits, with more than 35 legislators forming a separate group. But that will happen only after they take oath,” he added.

Sources said Monday’s fiasco is being viewed as a setback for Pawar since he was seen as taking a lead in mobilising non-BJP parties. “Initially Pawar had taken the view that NCP and Congress had the mandate to sit in the opposition. However, following mounting pressure from his colleagues, he began working on a non-BJP government. Now after a weeklong exercise, it appears that Congress has ditched us,’’ the senior leader said.