The monsoon session of the state legislature ended on the note of speculations of BJP central leadership moving chief minister Devendra Fadnavis to Delhi with a new responsibility.
A statement to this effect was first made by Shiv Sena (UBT) legislator Aditya Thackeray. He said that this would be the last session of Fadnavis as soon he will be moved to Delhi by his party’s leadership in a ministerial role or senior organisation role.
To add wind to the speculation further UBT Sena leader Sanjay Raut said that senior BJP minister Chandrashekhar Bavankule will be made the new chief minister in place of Fadnavis.
It would be interesting to remind the readers that Uddhav Thackeray has already made the statement that his party would support if a Maharashtrian were to become prime minister in near future.
Fadnavis is certainly one of the most important leaders of BJP in the country and he is the tallest BJP leader in Maharashtra with a solid grip on administration. There is no denying that some day BJP would elevate him to an important role in national politics but will that be in the immediate future? That looks unlikely.
Firstly, there is no BJP leader as strong as Fadnavis who can control party organisation and government very effectively. There is Fadnavis at the top and below him are leaders like Bavankule, Girish Mahajan, Ashish Shelar etc. But they don’t enjoy statewide popularity and image like Fadnavis. They have so far not shown vision like Fadnavis either. If Fadnavis has to go to Delhi it could possibly be around the time of next Lok Sabha elections in 2029. If BJP wins that election Fadnavis could be shifted to Delhi like Shivraj Singh Chauhan was in the Madhya Pradesh.
But why is Shiv Sena UBT leadership so keen to send Fadnavis to Delhi. The answer is simple, they are afraid of the political skills of Fadnavis. There was a time when Maharashtra politics revolved around Sharad Pawar, Fadnavis has reached similar status. Today the politics of Maharashtra revolves around him and that is the reason why many leaders in opposition MVA would like to see him in Delhi so that their survival in politics is guaranteed.
But what does Fadnavis himself have say about his Delhi move ? When asked about this speculation the chief minister mischievously replied that he had just returned from Delhi a couple of days ago.
