The new Mahayuti alliance government in Maharashtra would be formed on December 5, with Devendra Fadnavis as the leading contender for chief minister, according to a top BJP leader on November 30.
In the November 20 state assembly elections, the Mahayuti coalition, which included the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena, and Ajit Pawar’s Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), won 230 of 288 seats.
The BJP emerged as the largest party in Maharashtra with 132 seats, followed by Shiv Sena with 57 and the NCP with 41. Despite the election results being announced on November 23, no official decision has been made regarding the chief minister. Shinde, Fadnavis, and Pawar met with BJP President JP Nadda and Union Minister Amit Shah on November 28 to finalize a power-sharing agreement for the new government.
A key Mahayuti meeting scheduled for November 29 was postponed with a new meeting expected to take place on November 30, as caretaker CM Eknath Shinde traveled to his native village in Satara district.
The swearing-in ceremony for the new government is set for December 5. Devendra Fadnavis, a senior BJP leader who has previously served as chief minister twice and as deputy chief minister, is the front-runner for the position.
Shinde has expressed his full support for the BJP leadership’s decision in choosing the next CM, while the Ajit Pawar-led NCP has already endorsed Fadnavis for the chief minister’s role. Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Shirsat emphasized the party must retain control over the crucial home department in the upcoming government and claimed that efforts were being made to sideline caretaker CM Eknath Shinde.
Shinde’s “common man” image as chief minister has gained widespread acceptance, and despite being criticized with terms like “gaddar” (traitor), he has solidified his position after the state elections.
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Source: BT
