Bharatiya Janata Party leader Devendra Fadnavis on Thursday took oath as the chief minister of Maharashtra.
Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde and Nationalist Congress Party’s Ajit Pawar were sworn-in as Fadnavis’ deputies by Governor CP Radhakrishnan.
The ceremony at Mumbai’s Azad Maidan was attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, several BJP chief ministers and leaders of the National Democratic Alliance, among others.
On Wednesday, Fadnavis had announced that he will become the state’s chief minister. He held the post between 2014 and 2019 and was the deputy chief minister from June 2022.
It was not immediately clear who was to get key ministerial portfolios such as home affairs as part of the Mahayuti alliance’s power-sharing arrangement.
The Mahayuti alliance comprising the BJP, the Shiv Sena group led by Shinde and the Nationalist Congress Party faction led by Ajit Pawar won the Assembly election on November 23 by a landslide, securing 230 out of 288 seats.
The BJP emerged as the single-largest party with 132 seats. The Shinde Sena won in 57 seats and Ajit Pawar’s NCP group won in 41 constituencies.
The Maha Vikas Aghadi – comprising the Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray), the Nationalist Congress Party group led by Sharad Pawar and the Congress – won 46 seats.
At the press conference on Wednesday, Shinde reiterated his stance that he would support whatever decision Modi and Shah take on the chief minister’s post.
Ajit Pawar had said on Wednesday that he will take the deputy chief minister’s post. However, it had been unclear ahead of the swearing-in ceremony whether Shinde, who served as the chief minister since June 2022, had agreed to work as Fadnavis’ deputy.
This is a developing story. It will be updated as new details are available.
Also read: Cash transfers, caste calculus: What was behind the Mahayuti’s sweep in Maharashtra?
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