Devendra Fadnavis to be Maharashtra's new chief minister
What's the story
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Devendra Fadnavis has been decided as the new Chief Minister of Maharashtra at a crucial legislature party meeting on Wednesday, PTI reported, citing sources. The meeting was held to break the deadlock over the appointment of a new chief minister. Union Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and former Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani were appointed as central observers for the meeting.
Deputies
2 deputy CMs likely
Shiv Sena chief Eknath Shinde is likely to become the deputy chief minister along with Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Ajit Pawar. At the BJP meeting, Vijay Rupani, the party's observer in Mumbai, proposed Fadnavis's name for the top job. Sudhir Mungantiwar and Pankaja Munde, among other top BJP officials, overwhelmingly supported the move.
Third term
This will be his third term in office
This will be Fadnavis's third term in office after having served as CM from 31 October 2014 to 12 November 2019 and for five days before resigning on 28 November 2019. The swearing-in ceremony will take place on December 5 at Mumbai's Azad Maidan, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and around 2,000 VVIPs expected to attend along with around 40,000 supporters.
Twitter Post
We all fought historical election under Fadanvis: BJP state chief
Mumbai: Maharashtra BJP chief Chandrashekhar Bawankule, says "We all fought a historical election in the leadership of Devendra Fadanvis and we won a historic mandate for Mahayuti. We are committed to taking Maharashtra to the number one position with the help of PM Modi. We… https://t.co/dtmTgq5bxW pic.twitter.com/cABq9ir40r
— ANI (@ANI) December 4, 2024
Decision
End to Maharashtra's 11-day wait for CM
The selection of Fadnavis brings an end to Maharashtra's 11-day wait to find out who would be the next CM. Following the election results, Shiv Sena leaders had emphasized that since Shinde led the alliance into the polls, he must continue as CM. The BJP, however, suggested otherwise, having won 132 out of the 148 seats it fought.
Shinde
Mahayuti won 230 out of 288 seats
Shinde eventually stated that he would not be an obstacle to government formation and would accept any decision made by PM Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah. "I am not unhappy and not a speed-breaker in their decision making process. We will support any decision taken by them," he said. The Mahayuti won 230 out of 288 seats in the recent polls.