 "BJP's Devendra Fadnavis has emerged as the frontrunner for Maharashtra CM post. File Photo/PTI")
The Mahayuti alliance on Wednesday (December 4) staked claim to form the government in Maharashtra.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Shiv Sena, and Nationalist Congress Party’s (NCP) Ajit Pawar factions are part of the Mahayuti alliance.
After Mahayuti coalition leaders met Governor CP Radhakrishnan and staked claim to form the government, Radhakrishnan invited them to form the government.
In a statement after meeting Radhakrishnan, BJP leader and incumbent Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said that Shiv Sena chief and incumbent CM Eknath Shinde and NCP leader Ajit Pawar proposed Fadnavis’ name as the next CM of Maharashtra.
Fadnavis then said that Radhakrishnan has invited the Mahayuti coalition for the swearing-in of the new government on Thursday (December 5) at 5:30 pm.
Fadnavis is set to be the next CM of Maharashtra with Pawar as his Deputy CM.
Fadnavis said that he has asked Shinde to accept the post of Deputy CM but did not clarify if he has accepted it. There is therefore suspense over the role that Shinde will have in the incoming Maharashtra government.
For days, there were negotiations between the coalition partners over who would be chief minister and which party would get how many and what portfolios in the incoming government.
There were reports that Shinde and Shiv Sena were reluctant to give up the post of the chief minister. There were also reports that there could be a power-sharing arrangements between the BJP and Shiv Sena where Fadnavis would be the chief minister for the first half of the five-year term of the government and Shinde would be the chief minister in the second half. Whether such an arrangement has indeed been made is not known at the moment.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsIn the oath-taking ceremony tomorrow, CNN-News 18 reported that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah are expected to attend.