Nearly two weeks after the Mahayuti alliance pulled off a resounding victory in the Maharashtra assembly elections, senior BJP leader Eknath Shinde took oath as the chief minister on Thursday.
Former chief minister and Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde and Nationalist Congress Party leader Ajit Pawar were sworn in as the deputy CMs at a ceremony held at the sprawling Azad Maidan in south Mumbai.
Maharashtra Governor C.P. Radhakrishnan administered the oath of office and secrecy. This is the third time that Fadnavis, an MLA from Nagpur, will be sworn-in as the state’s chief minister.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, BJP national president J.P. Nadda, Union ministers and chief ministers of the NDA-ruled states were present at the swearing-in which came after days-long speculations about the power-sharing formula among the ruling allies.
Several business leaders, Bollywood actors and sports-persons were also present at the star-studded event.
The BJP became the single largest party, pocketing 132 seats in the 288-member house, while its allies, the Shiv Sena and the NCP, bagged 57 and 41 seats, respectively.
Suspense continued till the last minute on whether Shinde, who was reportedly upset over the proposed allocation of portfolios, would take up the deputy chief minister’s post. According to reports, the Shiv Sena has been demanding some important portfolios, including Home.
Fadnavis was elected the BJP Legislature Party leader at a meeting of the newly elected MLAs on Wednesday, though the party had informally announced that he was the front-runner to the top post.
