Devendra Fadnavis, Ajit Pawar resign as Maharashtra CM, Deputy CM: Timeline of events since revocation of President's Rule

Devendra Fadnavis on Tuesday resigned as Maharashtra chief minister, merely three days after taking over the post in an early-morning coup. This was about an hour after deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar resigned from his post. Follow are the key political developments in Maharashtra since the morning of 23 November: 23 November, 05.47 am: President’s Rule revoked in Maharashtra. 23 November, 07.02 am: Hours before the swearing-in, Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut tweeted, “Whoever is mocked the most, has the last laugh”. 23 November, 08.15 am: In a stunning turn of events in Maharashtra, BJP’s Devendra Fadnavis on Saturday returned as chief minister propped up by NCP’s Ajit Pawar, who was made his deputy, just hours after the new alliance of Shiv Sena, the NCP and the Congress reached a consensus that Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray will be their chief ministerial candidate. [caption id=“attachment_7703691” align=“alignnone” width=“825”]  Devendra Fadnavis submitting his resignation to Maharashtra governor Bhagat Singh Koshiyari (above) and Fadnavis after being sworn in as chief minister merely three days ago (below). PTI[/caption] 23 November, 09.27 am: NCP supremo Sharad Pawar tweeted, “Ajit Pawar’s decision to support the BJP to form the Maharashtra Government is his personal decision and not that of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP). We place on record that we do not support or endorse this decision of his.” 24 November, 11 am: The NCP said one of its its ‘missing’ MLAs Anil Patil has expressed faith in the leadership of Sharad Pawar, indicating his return to the party fold. In another significant development, BJP MP Sanjay Kakade and NCP leaders Jayant Patil, Chhagan Bhujbal and Baban Shinde, who is considered close to Ajit Pawar, met Sharad Pawar at his residence. 24 November, 12 pm: Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut claimed the Sena-NCP-Congress combine has the support of 165 MLAs to prove majority in the Maharashtra Assembly. 25 November, 5 pm:  The Maharashtra Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) said it has closed the probe into nine case of alleged corruption in irrigation projects in Maharashtra, adding none of these cases was linked to Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar. 25 November, 09.00 pm: A day before the Supreme Court rules on floor test for Maharashtra government led by Devendra Fadnavis whose swearing-in has been challenged by Shiv Sena-NCP-Congress combine, the three parties paraded 162 MLAs in a show of strength 26 November, 10.30 am: The Supreme Court directed Maharashtra governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari to ensure all elected members of the House are sworn in on Wednesday itself. 26 November, 11 am: Congress leader Prithviraj Chavan said his party, Sena and NCP are satisfied with the Supreme Court order of floor test in the Maharashtra Assembly, and that the Constitution has been respected on Constitution Day. The NCP said that it is the end of the BJP’s game. Follow live updates on Maharashtra govt formation here 26 November, 11.32 am: Opposition parties, including the Congress and the Shiv Sena, skipped a joint sitting of both houses of Parliament on the Constitution Day to mark their protest against the BJP’s alleged high-handedness in Maharashtra. 26 November, 11.46 am: Security stepped up around the Vidhan Bhawan in Mumbai. Elaborate police arrangement made to avoid any untoward incident outside the premises. 26 November, 11.50 am: The BJP said that a floor test in the Maharashtra Assembly on Wednesday will establish the position of different parties in its entirety. Its national spokesperson Nalin Kohli also rejected the contention that the Supreme Court order is a “setback” to the BJP. 26 November, 02.38 pm: Ajit Pawar resigns as deputy chief minister 26 November, 03.40 pm: Devendra Fadnavis resigns as chief minister. With inputs from PTI