The stalemate over the swearing-in of the new Chief Minister of Maharashtra continued on Monday, with caretaker Chief Minister Eknath Shinde calling off his scheduled meetings due to ill health. Meanwhile, NCP leader Ajit Pawar left for Delhi to hold discussions with senior BJP leaders over government formation.
Shinde, who is suffering from a throat infection and fever, did not come back to his official residence Varsha and stayed in his native Satara village over the weekend. He was supposed to attend a crucial meeting of Mahayuti leaders to finalize portfolio allocations, which is now scheduled for Tuesday. Sources in Shiv Sena said that no meeting of Mahayuti leaders was scheduled for today and the party was awaiting a schedule from the BJP, the largest party in the alliance.
The Mahayuti coalition of BJP, Shiv Sena, and Ajit Pawar-led NCP had swept the November 20 Maharashtra Assembly elections with 230 out of 288 seats. In the results announced on November 23, BJP had won a record 132 seats while Shiv Sena and NCP bagged 57 and 41 seats respectively. Devendra Fadnavis is widely speculated to be the Chief Minister as BJP is in the driver’s seat. Meanwhile, Ajit Pawar’s Delhi visit will be to discuss government formation, portfolio allocations with the BJP leadership.
Countering speculations of a bid for the post of Deputy Chief Minister, Shrikant Shinde, son of Eknath Shinde and Shiv Sena MP, termed them baseless. He made it clear that he is not after any ministerial post in Maharashtra: “The news that I will be the Deputy Chief Minister has been given with question marks for the past two days. As a matter of fact, there is no truth in it.”
He further emphasized his commitment to the party, mentioning his decision to decline a ministerial position in the central government after the NDA’s victory in the Lok Sabha elections. “I have no desire for a position in power. I make it clear once again that I am not in the race for any ministerial position in the state,” he reiterated, vowing to focus on his Lok Sabha constituency instead.
Just last week, Eknath Shinde said he had left the decision on the issue of the next Chief Minister before Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP leadership, stressing he won’t block discussion on the top post.
With the chief ministerial candidate yet to be confirmed, Maharashtra BJP chief Chandrashekhar Bawankule announced on Wednesday that the oath-taking ceremony of the new government would take place on December 5 in Mumbai as expectations rise over the final choice.
