Prithviraj Chavan meets Sonia, Rahul in New Delhi

Ahead of the Congress-nationalist Congress Party Coordination Committee meeting, Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan on Monday held consultations with senior leaders, including party chief Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi.

Chavan, who is under attack from state NCP leaders over his style of functioning, also held discussions with senior Congress leaders Ahmed Patel and Motilal Vora. Recently, the NCP had threatened to withdraw from the Union government complaining that allies were ignored by the Congress in the functioning of the United Progressive Alliance.

The NCP, a major coalition partner in the Democratic Front government in Maharashtra, had also complained that the coordination committee with the Congress in Maharashtra had not held meetings for the last three years.

The NCP withdrew its threat after the Congress agreed to set up a coordination mechanism with its allies at the Centre and reactivate the committee in Maharashtra.

The first meeting of the committee is expected to be held later this week either on Thursday or Friday. Chavan also met Minister of State in Prime Minister's Office V Narayanasamy and discussed the drought situation in Maharashtra.

The chief minister is scheduled to chair a meeting of state officials on Tuesday to review the drought situation in the state. The chief minister also met Civil Aviation Minister Ajit

Singh, who assured him that the Centre would fast track clearances for building the Navi Mumbai International Airport.