Devendra Fadnavis to be Maharashtra CM, Ajit Pawar Deputy, Suspense Continues over Shinde
Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, Dec 4: Ending the suspense of the last 10 days, the former Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis was on Wednesday elected the leader of the BJP legislature party to be sworn-in as the chief minister on Thursday.
Soon after his election, Mr Fadnavis flanked by the caretaker chief minister Eknath Shinde and the former deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar called on the governor CP Radhakrishnan to take claim for the formation of the “Mahayuti” government in the state. Mr Radhakrishnan accepted the claim and invited Mr Fadnavis to take oath of his ministry on Thursday.
While it is clear that Mr Fadnavis will take oath as the chief minister and Mr Pawar as his deputy at Thursday’s oath-taking ceremony, the suspense continued over Mr Shinde whether he would accept the offer for returning in the “Mahayuti” government as another deputy chief minister.
After meeting the governor, the key Mahayuti leaders jointly held a press conference just outside the Raj-Bhavan where Mr Fadnavis declared Ajit Pawar his deputy-elect. At the media conference, the chief minister-designate said he had called on Mr Shinde on Tuesday night and requested him to join his ministry as deputy chief minister. He said he hoped that Mr Shinde would accept his request and take oath with him and Mr Pawar on Thursday.
Mr Shinde who along with Mr Pawar were also present, when directly asked about his response to the offer, merely said “that will be known tomorrow.” Mr Pawar quickly interjected to say that he would be taking oath as deputy chief minister and the house burst out in laughter, but Mr Shinde still did not break his prolonged silence on the issue.
Earlier in the day, capping the 11-day suspense over who will get the Maharashtra top post, Mr Fadnavis was elected the BJP’s legislature party leader after a go-ahead from the central leadership. Soon after, he reached the Raj Bhavan with Mr Shinde and Mr Pawar, met Governor CP Radhakrishnan and staked claim to form the government.
“A special thanks to Shiv Sena chief and current Chief Minister Eknath Shinde for supporting me and requesting me to take the oath. NCP’s Ajit Pawar, too, formally requested me to take the oath. The Governor has invited me to form the government. I have requested Eknath Shinde to be part of the new government and I believe he would accept it,” said Mr Fadnavis, seated next to Mr Shinde and Mr Pawar during the press meet.
After days of political posturing by Sena leaders stressing that Mr Shinde’s contribution to the poll win must not be overlooked, Mr Fadnavis said the Chief Minister post was just a “technical understanding” between the allies. “We have taken decisions together and this will continue. We will work together for Maharashtra. A decision on other ministers will be taken in subsequent meetings.”
He said both Pawar and Shinde had recommended his name for the CM position in their letter of support. During the presser, Ajit Pawar also clarified that he hadn’t gone to Delhi to meet senior BJP leader and Union Home Minister Amit Shah. He said he went there because his wife was allocated a house as she was a member of the Rajya Shabha and he had to meet his lawyers for the NCP symbol case. He added that he was keeping his allies posted about his whereabouts and wanted to work for the welfare of people.
Mr Shinde stood firm about not confirming his role in the new government and said he will do so by evening. He said he backed Fadnavis like the BJP leader did for him two-and-a-half years ago, when he rebelled against then CM Uddhav Thackeray.
“We have staked claim to form government, oath-taking will happen tomorrow. 2.5 years back, Devendra Fadnavis said I should be CM; today, I am backing him for the same. We will give full support to the decision taken by PM, home minister. You all ran speculative stories even when I went to my village, but we are happy and are forming this government willingly. We are working as a team and do not look down on anyone,” he said.
He reiterated that the key leaders were on the same page and that the BJP top brass had been supporting them in their decisions. He said, “Fadnavis is an experienced leader and I support him in his endeavours. I wish him luck.” He added that even Ajit Pawar was a seasoned person and he has full faith in him.
He further said the new government’s aim was to work for the common man, and the Mahayuti had given its best and ensured that there was development during its previous tenure. “The task of government is to work for the people. People have supported us, I thank them. Fadnavis has experience, I am privileged to propose his name for CM. I wish him good luck to work for the development of the people… I will announce if I will be part of the cabinet by evening,” he added.
The trio left for Raj Bhavan shortly after holding a key Mahayuti meeting on portfolios at the Varsha Bungalow in Mumbai. Ahead of the meeting, Shiv Sena MLAs felicitated Fadnavis and congratulated him on being elected BJP Legislative Party’s leader unanimously earlier in the morning.
The grand oath-taking ceremony is scheduled to be held at the Azad Maidan in Mumbai at 5.30 PM on Thursday in the presence of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the union home minister Amit Shah and a host of leaders of the NDA.
A day ago, Fadnavis and Shinde met in their first in-person meeting since their discussions in Delhi last week for government formation. The hour-long meeting’s details were still unclear as the Mahayuti allies BJP, Shiv Sena and NCP staked claim to form the government on Wednesday.
Some political observers said viewed the meeting as an outreach effort by the BJP to placate an ally, which is weighing its options, while others believe it served as a preliminary discussion regarding the swearing-in ceremony set for December 5.
Both Shinde and Pawar have backed Fadnavis for CM while the latter has agreed to be one of the deputies. But, Shinde’s silence on his new role remains a thorn in the side. And if he does not decide by evening as he has said he will, the suspense could travel forward to the day of the oath taking.
Shinde has been unwell over the past few days. His decision to head to his village in Satara district last week had sparked speculation that he was unhappy over the way the new government was shaping up.
With the BJP’s massive score in the assembly election, Mr Fadnavis was seen by many as an automatic decision. But there was resistance from Mr Shinde’s faction of the Shiv Sena, which pitched for a second innings for their chief. The Sena claimed that it was the Shinde government’s welfare schemes that steered the Mahayuti to victory. Some of his leaders have openly questioned why Maharashtra cannot be another Bihar, where Nitish Kumar plays a dominant role despite better performance by the BJP in elections.
Even after Mr Shinde said he would accept whatever the BJP decides, some leaders of his party continued their push for the top post.
The Sena chief became Chief Minister in 2022 after a rebellion he led split the Shiv Sena and toppled the Uddhav Thackeray-led government of undivided Sena, Congress and NCP. Back then, despite holding more numerical strength in the House, the BJP had backed Mr Shinde for the top post. Mr Fadnavis, albeit grudgingly, had agreed to accept the Deputy Chief Minister post.
The Mahayuti scored a massive victory in the state polls, winning 230 out of 288 seats in the Assembly. The BJP won 132 seats, the Sena 57 and NCP 41. Following the results, all three Mahayuti leaders stressed that there is no dispute over the Chief Minister post.
But behind the scenes, a different story was unfolding. Mr Shinde had dug in his heels to stay on as Chief Minister as Sena leaders publicly said the election was won under his leadership. The BJP, however, refused to part with the Chief Minister post this time. Mr Shinde did not have much leverage as the BJP needed just NCP’s support to cross the majority mark in the Assembly. Eventually, Mr Shinde issued a public statement and said he would not be an obstacle in government formation and would accept Mr Modi and Mr Shah’s decision on the Chief Minister post.
Following the unanimous election of Mr Fadnavis as the BJP Legislature Party Leader, newly elected chief whip of the BJP State unit, Ashish Shelar, on Wednesday said the day was like Diwali for the party and its leaders. Referring to the Assembly poll results, Mr Shelar said that the unprecedented and unparalleled mandate received by the BJP was historical.
“Mahayuti received unprecedented and unparalleled mandate, seats of Shiv Sena and NCP also increased under the leadership of Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar. BJP’s striking rate is historical… today unanimously we chose Devendra Fadnavis as the Leader of Maharashtra and soon we will stake claim to form the govt as well… it is Diwali for us today…” Mr Shelar said.
