Promises to keep: Maharashtra's 10 new ministers take oath at Vidhan Bhavan
The Maharashtra Cabinet was expanded on Friday from 29 ministers to 40. The 11 new ministers took their oath at a ceremony at Vidhan Bhavan.
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The Maharashtra Cabinet was expanded on Friday from 29 ministers to 40. Ten new ministers took their oaths, along with Ram Shinde, who was promoted from minister of state to cabinet minister at a ceremony at Vidhan Bhavan. (l-r) Cabinet Ministers Jaikumar Raval, Ram Shinde and Pandurang Phundkar, with Ministers of State Arjun Khotkar, Sadabhau Khot, Madan Yerawar and Gulabrao Patil. Sachin Gokhale/Firstpost
Newly inducted Cabinet Minister Mahadeo Jankar signs the official document after taking his oath in the presence of Governor C Vidyasagar Rao. Jankar belongs to the Rashtriya Samaj Party. Sachin Gokhale/Firstpost
Cabinet Minister Mahadeo Jankar poses with his mother Sonabai, 91, after the oath taking ceremony. Sachin Gokhale/Firstpost
Pandurang Phundkar greets Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis after taking oath as cabinet minister. He is a very senior leader close to the late Gopinath Munde and has previously occupied positions such as BJP state party president and Opposition leader in the legislative council. Sachin Gokhale/Firstpost
Ram Shinde, formerly minister of state for home (rural), was promoted to the rank of cabinet minister. He is congratulated by CM Fadnavis. A postgraduate in science, he is also a professor. Shinde is from Jamkhed in Ahmednagar. Sachin Gokhale/Firstpost
Ravindra Chavan took oath as minister of state. Political watchers say that the post is a reward for Chavan as it was under his leadership that BJP increased their share of seats in the Kalyan Dombivli Municipal Corporation election in November 2015. Sachin Gokhale/Firstpost
Sadabhau Khot is congratulated by CM Fadnavis after being inducted as minister of state. Khot belongs to the Shetkari Swabhiman Party. Sachin Gokhale/Firstpost
Arjun Khotkar, a Shiv Sena MLA from Jalna constituencey, was inducted as minister of state. He has been the minister of state earlier during the Shiv Sena government in 1994. Sachin Gokhale/Firstpost
Jaykumar Rawal, a two-time BJP MLA from Dondai, meets CM Fadnavis after being inducted as cabinet minister. Analysts say that he was chosen because the government needed a strong representative from northern Maharashtra after the exit of the previous representative, Eknath Khadse. Sachin Gokhale/Firstpost
Governor Rao congratulates Madan Yerawar, BJP MLA from Yavatmal, who was inducted as minister of state. He began his political career in 1991 as a municipal councillor in Yavatmal and has occupied various positions at the grassroots level. Sachin Gokhale/Firstpost
Subhash Deshmukh, BJP MLA from Solapur, takes oath as cabinet minister. He is also the chairman of Lokmangal Group, an NGO in Solapur , which conducts mass weddings for the poor every year. Sachin Gokhale/Firstpost
Sambhajirao Patil Nilangekar is a two-time BJP MLA from Nilanga. The 38-year-old is is a commercial pilot and a member of the RSS. He was inducted as cabinet minister. Sachin Gokhale/Firstpost
(l-r) MoS Ravindra Chavan, Cabinet Ministers Sambhajirao Patil Nilangekar, Subhash Deshmukh, Mahadeo Jankar, Jaykumar Rawal, Ram Shinde and Pandurang Phundkar. Sachin Gokhale/Firstpost