A day after joining the Eknath Shinde-led Maharashtra government, Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and state minister Chhagan Bhujbal on Monday went to meet Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis to discuss allocation of portfolios in the cabinet, sources said.
Against the strength of 288, the effective strength is 287, as there is one vacancy due to the death of Shiv Sena MLA Ramesh Latke last month.
Maharashtra's former deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar and top Nationalist Congress Party leaders Sunil Tatkare and Chhagan Bhujbal could be in for trouble after Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis gave a go ahead for probe against them in an alleged corruption case.
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.
Did the fear of central agencies probing scams involving NCP leaders that forced these politicians to jump ship?
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 Shinde-led Shiv Sena has maintained he will continue to be CM despite the NCP joining the state government, which also includes the Bharatiya Janata Party.
The Mahayuti alliance in Maharashtra, comprising the BJP, Shiv Sena, and NCP, will decide whether only the chief minister and deputy CMs will take the oath of office on December 5, or whether ministers will also be sworn in. The swearing-in ceremony is scheduled for the evening at Azad Maidan in south Mumbai, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi attending. While BJP sources have indicated that Devendra Fadnavis is the frontrunner for the chief minister's post, the BJP legislature party leader is yet to be appointed. NCP chief Ajit Pawar has stated that the chief minister will be from the BJP, with deputy CMs from the Shiv Sena and NCP. The Mahayuti alliance secured a landslide victory in the assembly elections, winning 230 seats out of 288. The government formation has been delayed due to disagreements on the chief minister's position.
Tensions are rising within the ruling Mahayuti coalition in Maharashtra amid internal conflicts and open threats over unresolved issues like cabinet expansion and Rajya Sabha nominations.
Shiv Sena chief Eknath Shinde on Tuesday stepped down as Maharashtra chief minister, even as the suspense over who will succeed him as the new CM continued, three days after state assembly election results were announced.
The priority now is to work out a comprehensive plan for government formation.
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party has informed the Election Commission that he has been elected national president of the party.
'Over the last 65 years the state has seen majority of Maratha chief ministers and cabinet ministers, even Union cabinet ministers.' 'The Marathas have always wielded disproportionately significant political, commercial and social influence in the state and yet they are asking for reservations today.'
Union Minister Praful Patel and Maharashtra minister Chhagan Bhujbal, who is the Nationalist Congress Party's OBC face, are among 18 candidates announced by the party on Thursday for the Lok Sabha polls in Maharashtra.
Raut was referring to the recent war of words between state ministers Chhagan Bhujbal and Shambhuraj Desai.
Union minister Narayan Rane has opposed the Maharashtra government's decision to issue Kunbi caste certificates to the Maratha community members and said 'proud Marathas' would not want to be included in that caste segment to avail reservation benefits.
Stressing for an alliance, the MPs have conveyed to Thackeray that the BJP was a "natural ally" of the Shiv Sena unlike the "unnatural alliance" of the Maha Vikas Aghadi, Sena MP Hemant Godse said.
Patel insisted that the meeting with Shah and other BJP leaders was a "courtesy call" as he and Ajit Pawar had not met them formally since joining the ruling alliance in Maharashtra.
The factional fight of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) has reached the doorstep of the Election Commission, with the group led by Ajit Pawar filing over 40 affidavits of MLAs and MPs in his support.
Nationalist Congress Party leader Ajit Pawar, who took oath as Deputy Chief Minister in the Shiv Sena-Bharatiya Janata Party government on Sunday, has the support of more than 40 MLAs and over six MLCs of his party, sources claimed citing a letter submitted to Raj Bhavan.
As suspense over who will become the next Chief Minister of Maharashtra continues, Nationalist Congress Party leader Chhagan Bhujbal on Sunday backed his party's chief, Ajit Pawar, for the top post.
Bharatiya Janata Party leader Kirit Somaiya, who was vocal about allegations of corruption against many Nationalist Congress Party leaders, including the recently inducted ministers Ajit Pawar, Chhagan Bhujbal, Sunil Tatkare and Hasan Mushrif, on Tuesday refrained from commenting against them.
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 Nationalist Congress Party leader was speaking in the assembly on a resolution moved by Speaker Rahul Narvekar urging the government to formulate a new women's policy.
ED officials said the nine premises covered under the action included properties and offices belonging to Bhujbal, son Pankaj, nephew and former member of Parliament Samir and a few others.
Speaking to reporters at Antarwali Sarati village in Jalna district, the activist said he would wait and see if the state government converts its draft notification on 'blood relatives' of Kunbi Marathas into law and then decide on the course of his agitation.
Referring to the demand of giving a Kunbi certificate to all 54 lakh people whose proof of being Kunabi has been found till now, Patil said that they will be given the certificates soon.
The Election Commission has called the rival factions of the NCP for a personal hearing on October 6 following a petition filed by the Ajit group claiming that he has been elected as the party's national president.
A day after NCP leader Samir Bhujbal was arrested by the ED, party chief Sharad Pawar said he has not seen such "blatant misuse of power" in last 40 years.
Sources in the BJP said the expansion of the cabinet was unlikely before the session though the allocation of portfolios to the NCP ministers might happen in the coming days.
Shinde said his new deputy Ajit Pawar has chosen the path of development and expressed his faith in the leadership of Modi.
As the meeting was underway, several NCP workers wearing caps with the message 'I am with saheb' demanded that NCP president Sharad Pawar reconsider his decision to step down as party chief.
Their lists show that a significant number of contenders are closely related to the current ministers, legislators or MPs, including their sons or daughters, wives and brothers or sisters.
Speaking at a joint rally of Mahayuti partners in Mumbai, Bharatiya Janata Party leader and deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis supported Shinde's claims, stating that the NDA leaders did not pay enough attention to the lies spread by the Opposition during the campaign.
The NCP supremo, who was at the receiving end of his nephew's move during the day, had, 45 years ago, split the Congress and walked out with 40 MLAs, leading to the collapse of the Vasantdada Patil government.
Stringent security measures like ban on entry of cars belonging to ministers and Members of Legislative Assembly were put in place at the Maharashtra legislature complex following inputs that it was on the terror radar, Deputy Chief Minister Chhagan Bhujbal said on Thursday.
On Thursday, Fadnavis wrote a letter to Ajit Pawar opposing NCP leader Nawab Malik sitting on a treasury bench seat.
'If Uddhav Thackerayji does not stop taking jibes at others and instead think about Maharashtra's development, then the few workers left with him will also leave'
Politicians across the political spectrum graced Radhika Merchant and Anant Ambani's wedding ceremonies at the Jio World Convention Centre at the Bandra Kurla Complex in north west Mumbai.
At the state level, Pawar appealed to Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde to convene an all-party meeting to discuss the quota dispute.
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