Devendra Fadnavis 5th ex-Maharashtra CM to become 'junior' minister
In a dramatic turn of events, rebel Shiv Sena MLA Eknath Shinde took oath as the Chief Minister (CM) of Maharashtra on Thursday with former CM and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Devendra Fadnavis becoming his deputy. Fadnavis, who was a full-term CM from 2014 to 2019, became the fifth former CM of the state to accept a junior position in a subsequent government.
- On Wednesday, Uddhav Thackeray's resignation put an end to the week-long political standoff in Maharashtra, caused by an uprising by Shiv Sena MLAs.
- The Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) has likewise disintegrated after a two-and-a-half-year tenure.
- Although it was expected that Fadnavis will be the CM, the new announcement throws a surprise for everyone.
After Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray-led MVA government collapsed in the state, Fadnavis had announced that he wouldn't be part of the new government. However, later was sworn in as the deputy CM following the BJP's directions. To recall, Fadnavis became CM for three days with the support of a group of Nationalist Congress Party MLAs led by Ajit Pawar after 2019 assembly polls.
Maharashtra has witnessed a former CM accepting a junior post in a subsequent government earlier as well. In 1978, Congress leader Shankarrao Chavan became the finance minister in the Progressive Democratic Front government led by Sharad Pawar. Chavan was CM for two years from 1975, and was replaced by Vasantdada Patil. In 1978, Pawar, a cabinet minister, brought down the government and became CM.
Shivajirao Patil Nilangekar was the Maharashtra CM from June 1985 to March 1986. In 2004, he became the revenue minister in the Sushilkumar Shinde government. Narayan Rane, who was with the Shiv Sena, became Maharashtra CM in 1999 for less than a year. He then left the Shiv Sena and joined the Congress. He was the revenue minister in the Vilasrao Deshmukh Congress government.
Congress leader Ashok Chavan was the Maharashtra chief minister from 2008 to 2010. In 2019, after the Sena's fallout with the BJP and the formation of the MVA government, he became the PWD minister in the Uddhav Thackeray-led government.
