mumbai –BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis sworn in as 21st Chief Minister of Maharashtra while Shiv Sena’s Eknath Eknath Shinde and the National Communist Party’s (NCP) Ajit Pawar were sworn in as deputy chief ministers on Thursday, ending the long-running suspense over the formation of the ministry after the formation of Mahayutthir’s alliance. victory.
This is the third time Fadnavis has been sworn in as the Chief Minister of Maharashtra.
The swearing-in ceremony was held at the historic Azad Square here, attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Defense Minister Rajnath Singh, Bharatiya Janata Party Chairman JP Nadda and others. This is the culmination of nearly two weeks of intense negotiations between Mahayutthi’s parties after the results of the 2024 Maharashtra Assembly elections were announced on November 23.
The BJP-Shiv Sena-NCP Mahayuti alliance holds a 230-seat majority in the 288-member Maharashtra Assembly.
Earlier in the day, the Shiv Sena said Eknath Shinde was ready to meet Amit Shah after the oath-taking ceremony to discuss the controversial Maharashtra family portfolio, BJP and Shinde-led political parties are focusing on the issue.
Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Shirsat said: “After the swearing-in ceremony, Eknath Shinde will meet Amit Shah and take a decision on the home minister and other posts.”
In a related development, BJP leader Sudhir Mungantiwar said after being asked when the remaining members would be convened, “The meeting of ministers is likely to be held in the Maharashtra Assembly He was sworn in before the start of the winter session to avoid administrative chaos “. Cabinet ministers will be sworn in.
Soon after Thursday’s swearing-in event, Maharashtra Chief Minister CM Fadnavis, Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Ajit Pawar addressed the media on the sixth floor of the Mantralaya (State Secretariat) administrative building in south Mumbai, not far from the Azad Maidan venue where the oath-taking ceremony was held.
The awards ceremony was also attended by many Bollywood stars including Shah Rukh Khan, Sanjay Dutt, Madhuri Dixit, Ranveer Singh, Ranbir Kapoor and many more. Cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar and his wife were also present at the event.
Maharaja’s party won 236 seats in the 288-member Maharashtra Assembly. The BJP won 132 seats, the Shiv Sena 57 seats and the National Congress 41 seats. He served as the Chief Minister of Maharashtra from 2014 to 2019. In 2019, he served as chief minister in the BJP-NCP government for 72 hours.
Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde is the former Chief Minister of Maharashtra and served as the Leader of Opposition in the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly from 2014 to 2019. He was also a minister in the Uddhav Thackeray-led government. Later, Shinde became the chief minister after rebelling against Uddhav Thackeray, split the Shiv Sena, formed a joint BJP-Shiv Sena government and became the chief minister, while Devendra Fadnavis became the deputy Chief.
Ajit Pawar first served as deputy chief minister in 2010. Ajit Pawar on Thursday took oath as deputy chief minister for the sixth time in the current government led by Devendra Fadnavis. Ajit Pawar served as deputy chief minister to four Maharashtra chief ministers namely Prithviraj Chavan, Devendra Fadnavis, Uddhav Thackeray and Eknath Shinde. Ajit Pawar happens to be the senior-most and most experienced minister in Mahayuth’s government that was sworn in on Thursday.
