Mumbai: Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray met Nationalist Congress Party legislators in the presence of their party chief Sharad Pawar at Hotel Renaissance on Sunday. “Both leaders are trying to boost the morale of legislators, assuring them that they would stick together to form the government,” said a party legislator, who was present at the hotel.

The Sena chief also met his own party’s legislators at Hotel Lalit in suburban Mumbai. Meanwhile, the Congress leaders were put up at J.W. Marriott Hotel.

A NCP legislator said that Mr Thackeray had told the legislators that all three parties — Shiv Sena, Congress and NCP — were united. “Mr Pawar is known for pulling off the impossible. Therefore, we are certain of attaining success this time too,” he said, quoting the Shiv Sena chief.

Sources said that some policemen in plainclothes were spying on the NCP MLAs at Hotel Renaissance. As a result, the legislators were shifted to the Hyatt, as the legislators of the three parties would remain in a 2-km radius. Meanwhile, senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel had arrived at the J.W. Marriott Hotel on Sunday to meet the MLAs from his party. Mr Patel was holding a meeting in the hotel with senior leaders, a source sad.

Senior Congress leader Nasim Khan said: “We are confident that the BJP will fail in proving its majority on the floor of the House.”

PTI adds: Senior Congress leader Ashok Chavan on Sunday alleged that BJP leaders had booked rooms in hotels where his party MLAs were put up and were contacting some of them. Speculation was rife that the task of getting MLAs into the BJP’s fold has been entrusted to senior leader Radhkrishna Vikhe Patil, who had crossed over from the Congress to the BJP ahead of the October Assembly polls.

When asked about the speculation, Mr Vikhe Patil gave a cryptic and open-to-interpretation reply, stating: “I have good relations with all MLAs.”

Mr Chavan told reporters that some Congress MLAs had told him about the move by the BJP. “Our MLAs are united and will not be poached,” Mr Chavan said.

The Congress legislators were earlier supposed to leave for Jaipur, but were later put up in Mumbai in view of the fast-paced political developments, according to sources.