Devendra Fadnavis set to return as Maharashtra CM, but suspense over Eknath Shinde’s role in Mahayuti 2.0 – Times of India

Devendra Fadnavis and Eknath Shinde (R)

NEW DELHI: BJP’s Devendra Fadnavis on Wednesday met Maharashtra governor C P Radhakrishnan and staked claim to form Mahayuti 2.0 ending days of suspense over government formation in the state after the ruling coalition’s landslide victory in the assembly elections. However, there is still no clarity if caretaker chief minister Eknath Shinde will join the government as his deputy.
Shinde, who addressed the media after the meeting of Mahayuti leaders with the governor, said “wait till evening” when asked about his future role in the government. This was after Fadnavis revealed that Shinde was still undecided on joining the Mahayuti cabinet. Fadnavis maintained that Shinde will play a key role in the government but did not elaborate on what that role would be.
“I met Eknath Shinde yesterday and requested him to join the Mahayuti cabinet. All of us, including shiv Sena MLAs, want him to be part of the state cabinet. I am sure he will join the government,” Fadnavis said after meeting the governor.
Shinde, who became the chief minister in 2022 after he rebelled against Uddhav Thackeray and joined hands with the BJP, was keen on a second term after the Mahayuti registered a spectacular victory in the just-concluded assembly elections under his leadership. However, the BJP, which won 132 seats in the 288-member assembly, was clear about leading the government this time. With BJP firm on role reversal, Shinde eventually agreed to leaving the top post for the senior partner.
“There is no one too big or small in the Mahayuti. We are working as a team. Two and a half years ago, Fadnavis proposed my name as chief minister. Today, I have proposed Fadnavis’s name as the next chief minister,” Shinde said.
Immediately after the results were out, Shiv Sena leaders had orchestrated a campaign for Shinde to continue as Mahayuti’s chief minister citing the Bihar model where BJP’s junior partner Nitish Kumar is leading the government. Shiv Sena leaders claimed that Mahayuti’s spectacular victory was due to Shinde’s governance as the chief minister and hence he deserved a second term. Four days after the November 23 mandate, Shinde finally announced that he will abide by the decision of Prime Minister Modi and Union home minister Amit Shah on the chief minister pick.