Maharashtra Industries Minister Ashok Chavan will be the next chief minister of the state.The decision comes after long deliberations by the Congress high command, which on Wednesday had asked Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh to resign, following the terror attack in Mumbai last week. Chavan has been nominated the leader of the state Congress Legislature Party by Congress president Sonia Gandhi, External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee told reporters on Friday.
Amid talks of cross-voting, three of the 37 Congress MLAs in Maharashtra skipped a meeting called by the party ahead of the legislative council polls on Friday.
Ajit Pawar's NCP, a constituent of Mahayuti, was winning or leading in 41 of the 59 seats it contested as per the latest figures released by the Election Commission.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Saturday pulled off a stunning performance in Maharashtra winning a record number of seats to propel the party-led ruling Mahayuti alliance to a landslide victory while the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) stormed back to power in Jharkhand on the back of a spectacular showing by the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha.
Two days after being sworn in as Maharashtra Chief Minister, Devendra Fadnavis on Saturday took oath as an MLA along with deputy CMs Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar, while the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi boycotted the ceremony alleging EVM misuse.
In the coming assembly election, negotiations over seat-sharing will be as important as actual outreach to voters.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Thursday assured his government will continue the Ladki Bahin Yojana and fulfil Mahayuti's pre-poll promise of hiking the monthly stipend under the scheme to Rs 2,100 from Rs 1,500 now to eligible women.
Ashok Chavan's choice as Maharashtra Chief Minister once again drives home the clout of political inheritance in the Congress.Ashok Chavan, 50, inherited the political legacy of his late father and former Chief Minister S B Chavan, becoming the first father-son duo in the state's history to adorn the chief ministerial chair. The senior Chavan was a loyalist of the Nehru-Gandhi family.
Of the ruling alliance Mahayuti, NCP ministers Dilip Walse Patil and Chhagan Bhujbal filed the papers for Ambegaon and Yeola seats, respectively, while their cabinet colleague from the BJP
The Opposition concluded that NCP's Chavan would be able to get the support of all opposition parties and even a few of the National Democratic Alliance allies.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan, who spearheaded Congress' Lok Sabha election campaign in the state, attributed the party's rout to some policies of the central government.
In a late-night statement, the Navy said it has deputed a team to immediately investigate the cause of the "unfortunate accident" and initiate steps to repair, restore and reinstate the statue at the earliest.
The Congress said BJP MPs had sticks in their hands and Kharge was threatened and pushed.
The Maharashtra chief minister is here to stay for the time being, that's the message to party members. The Congress is in no hurry to replace him or rush into campaign mode, says N Suresh.
The Bombay high court on Wednesday said the probe into the killing of Badlapur sexual assault case accused Akshay Shinde in a shoot-out should be carried out in a fair and impartial manner.
Amid parties accusing rivals of promoting dynastic politics, the November 20 Maharashtra assembly polls will see brothers, cousins and father-children in the fray, with members of the same family taking on each other in some seats.
The Bombay High Court has criticized the Maharashtra CID for its "lackadaisical" probe into the killing of the Badlapur school sexual assault case accused, Akshay Shinde, in an alleged police shootout on September 23. The court pointed to several lacunae in the investigation, including the lack of gunshot residue on Shinde's hands and fingerprints on the water bottle he was given. The court directed the CID to complete the probe in two weeks and submit all relevant material to the magistrate.
Fadnavis said the opinion of advocate general was sought on the sanction and the law officer clearly said 'such permission should be and could be granted.'
After spending 26 days behind bars in IPL spot-fixing case, former India cricketer Shantakumaran Sreesanth was released from Tihar Jail on Tuesday night along with Ankit Chavan and 17 others.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Saturday demanded the immediate resignation of Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan for his alleged role in the Adarsh Society scam.
Maharashtra Chief minister Prithviraj Chavan's criticism of Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray has not gone down well with the saffron party which blasted the Congress leader.
The firing took place outside his MLA son Zeeshan Siddiqui's office.
Rajasthan Royals cricketer Ankeet Chavan, who is out on bail after being arrested for alleged involvement in the IPL spot-fixing scandal, today said he is hoping to get a "positive" verdict from the judiciary to restart his cricketing career.
Chavan continues to survive despite strong criticism from coalition partner Nationalist Congress Party, notes Sanjay Jog.
The rout of Sharad Pawar-led faction has raised questions over his political future with a potential risk of a further slide in the party flock in future.
Parliamentary proceedings were disrupted for the third consecutive day in the Winter Session as opposition parties continued their protests over the Adani issue and violence in Manipur and Sambhal. Both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha were adjourned within minutes of convening, despite appeals from the Chair to engage in productive dialogue and refrain from disruption. The opposition members raised slogans demanding action against the perpetrators of violence in Sambhal, and sought discussions on allegations of irregularities against the Adani Group and the violence in Manipur.
In the backdrop of a crucial meeting of Nationalist Congress Party, which is on the offensive against Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan, party chief Sharad Pawar's old friend Bal Thackeray on Monday said Chavan's post may be in a "jeopardy".
'If you fight you win, if you don't fight, how will you win?'
All the 36 accused persons including former India Test cricketer Shantakumaran Sreesanth along with his Rajasthan Royal team mates Ajit Chandila and Ankeet Chavan were cleared of all charges in the Indian Premier League spot-fixing scandal, by a Delhi court, on Saturday.
Ashokrao Chavan became the third chief minister of Maharashtra on Tuesday to be consumed by scams and corruption in three decades with belief in astrology even not helping him to survive his worst political crisis.
'Can you believe Ashok Chavan was with me in the senior leaders' meeting one day, and next day morning, he switched sides!'
In a last-ditch effort to patch up, Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan on Monday, held closed-door meeting with rebel Congress leader Narayan Rane who is set to announce his future plans on Tuesday.
Prima facie, an argument with other inmates over taking a bath in the bathroom area of the jail resulted in the attack on 59-year-old Munna alias Mohammad Ali Khan alias Manoj Kumar Bhawarlal Gupta.
The Bombay high court has said Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has a legitimate right for an expeditious decision on merits over a 2014 defamation complaint for his alleged remarks against the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.
A day after Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar asked senior coalition partner, the Congress, to speed-up seat-sharing talks for the Mumbai municipal polls, due next month, Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan on Monday downplayed the "ultimatum" given by the Union agriculture minister.
Former Maharastra CM Prithviraj Chavan, who is contesting his maiden assembly election from Karad, is facing a formidable party rebel as an adversary in in Satara district, a traditional Congress bastion.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan said, "Today or in recent times there was no alert in the city. We were not having any information that such strike was possible. There was no specific or general information of the possibility of serial blasts. In that sense we were not prepared, but we will help the victims in the best possible way and we will finish investigating it as soon a possible."
The deputy chief minister called for the "strictest of strict" action against perpetrators of such crimes.
The inquiry commission probing the Adarsh Housing Society scam has issued summons to former Maharashtra chief ministers Vilasrao Deshmukh and Ashok Chavan to appear before it as witnesses. The two-member commission, which summoned Union Power Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde last week, issued summons to Deshmukh, presently Union minister for rural development, and Chavan.Chavan had to step down as the state chief minister last year following the Adarsh controversy.
The Central Bureau of Investigation is likely to seek a review of Maharashtra governor's order refusing to grant sanction for prosecution of former Chief Minister Ashok Chavan in the multi-crore Adarsh housing scam.
