The cabinet expansion of the Devendra Fadnavis-led Maharashtra government is likely to take place by December 14, a senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader said on Wednesday.
Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray said his party responded to Maharashtra Navnirman Sena's call for rapprochement and that seniors from that party should step up to take it forward. Thackeray said his party welcomes whoever is opposed to the anti-Maharashtra BJP. The statement follows speculation about a possible reconciliation between cousins Uddhav Thackeray and Raj Thackeray, who had a bitter parting of ways nearly two decades ago.
The data of ineligible beneficiaries has been submitted to district authorities for physical verification, and appropriate action will be initiated on completion of the scrutiny, the Women and Child Development Minister said.
Jarange had also claimed that a poisoning attempt was made against him through saline, though he did not elaborate on it.
Shinde called on Joshi and Leeladhar Dake to inquire about their health.
To a question about the BJP's next move, as it is the single largest party in the Maharashtra legislative assembly, Patil said, "The next steps will be decided by Fadnavis and Eknath Shinde."
The Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT) on Tuesday claimed 22 MLAs and nine MPs from the rival Shiv Sena were feeling suffocated due to the "step-motherly treatment" by the Bharatiya Janata Party and could quit the group led by Maharashtra Chief minister Eknath Shinde.
Shinde made the sensational claim while speaking to reporters on the eve of the Maharashtra Assembly's Budget session.
"We will definitely contest it in court. The Shinde faction left the Shiv Sena, then how can they claim that their group is the original party, and not the one led by Uddhav Thackeray. The Thackeray name is synonymous with the Shiv Sena," the Rajya Sabha member said.
Gulabrao Patil said that they had not quit the party for power, but "left power while we were ministers."
"Kamra merely expressed his views. He stated the facts and voiced the public opinion," Thackeray told reporters at Vidhan Bhavan in south Mumbai.
Narvekar, who polled 164 votes, defeated Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena candidate Rajan Salvi who got 107 votes.
Clearing the air around the distribution of portfolio with the Bharatiya Janata Party, Shiv Sena MLA Eknath Shinde on Thursday said that there has been no discussion with the latter, however, adding that the talks will happen soon.
The timeline of the Shiv Sena-centric political crisis in Maharashtra.
Shiv Sena MLA Narendra Bhondekar has resigned from all party posts after expressing disappointment at not being included in the Maharashtra cabinet. Bhondekar, who was the Shiv Sena's deputy leader and co-ordinator for eastern Vidarbha districts, claimed his party head and Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde had promised him a cabinet berth. He said he intended to secure a cabinet post to become the guardian minister of Bhandara district, but he will now serve as an ordinary party worker.
Maharashtra government to resume payments for most beneficiaries of the Ladki Bahin scheme after verification process found only a small percentage to be ineligible.
The estimated cost of the Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train project is Rs 1,10,000 crore, of which Rs 88,000 crore are being funded by the Japan International Cooperation Agency.
Thackeray said since the SC directed Narwekar in May last year to take a decision on the pleas seeking disqualification of rebel Shiv Sena MLAs, the speaker has met the chief minister twice.
The Shiv Sena split into the Uddhav Thackeray and Shinde factions last year, after which the former filed petitions with the Speaker seeking disqualification of several MLAs belonging to the chief minister's camp.
It is not clear how much money the government will transfer into the bank accounts of women in Maharashtra.
Meanwhile, a structural engineer named in the case registered in connection with the collapse of the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj's statue claimed that he was not the structural consultant for the project.
The coming weeks are sure to have a lot of drama unfolding in Maharashtra, predicts N Sathiya Moorthy.
Rebel Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde on Tuesday said he will soon return to Mumbai, and rubbished Shiv Sena's claim that as many as 20 MLAs of his group are in touch with the Uddhav Thackeray-led party.
State industries minister Uday Samant and party leader Ramdas Kadam gave information about the resolutions passed in the meeting.
The advertisement carries Sena's bow-and-arrow symbol and images of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and CM Shinde. It has no image or photo of Shiv Sena founder late Balasaheb Thackeray, a noticeable departure going by its earlier publicity materials.
Interestingly, Kanal's crossover to Sena came on a day Aaditya Thackeray led a morcha against alleged scams and corruption in the Mumbai civic body.
Talks between Maratha quota agitation leader Manoj Jarange and a government delegation ended without a resolution in Mumbai. Jarange criticized the Chief Minister and vowed to continue his hunger strike, demanding a 10% quota for Marathas under the OBC category.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday said the ruling Mahayuti in Maharashtra will retain power with full majority and a decision on who will be the chief minister will be taken by the alliance partners after the state polls.
Dismissing speculation that he was about to be replaced as chief minister, Shinde said these were baseless rumours which cause him no "tension", and the "higher ups" will take appropriate decision.
'Crores of rupees have been spent on paper but nothing has actually happened on the ground.'
Dominic Xavier offers his take on Maharashtra's riveting political drama when ambitious Eknath Shinde dethroned the late Shiv Sena founder Balasaheb Thackeray's son and political heir last night.
Sena MLA Sanjay Gaikwad's announcement of a 'reward' for anyone chopping off Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's tongue had set off a huge political row.
The Congress, which has 37 MLAs, had fixed a quota of 30 first preference votes for its candidate Satav, and seven remaining votes were to go to its ally Sena (UBT)'s nominee Narvekar, party sources said. Eventually, Satav got 25 and Narvekar 22 first preference votes, which meant at least seven Congress MLAs cross-voted.
The video, shot before the commencement of a press conference after an all-party meeting on Monday on the demand for reservation to Maratha community, shows Shinde asking the other two leaders, "We just need to speak and leave, right?" While Ajit Pawar promptly replies, "Yes, right," Fadnavis is seen whispering in Shinde's ear and pointing out that the microphone is on. Pawar is also seen indicating the same.
A series of decisions were taken under the Public Health Department, including an approval to increase honoraria for field-level workers engaged under the Ayushman BharatPradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana and Mahatma Jyotirao Phule Jan Arogya Yojana.
Raut made the allegations in a letter to the Mumbai police commissioner, copies of which were also sent to Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who holds the home portfolio, and the police of Thane city.
Leaders of the Maharashtra NDA alliance, including the BJP, Shiv Sena, and NCP, are set to meet with the BJP's national leadership on Thursday to finalize the composition of the new state government. The meeting is expected to confirm the formula of one chief minister and two deputy chief ministers, with the BJP likely to hold the chief ministerial post and its allies Shiv Sena and NCP sharing the deputy chief minister positions. The BJP-led Mahayuti alliance won a landslide victory in the recent state assembly elections, securing 230 seats in the 288-member House.
Bollywood actor and former Congress Lok Sabha MP Govinda on Thursday joined the Shiv Sena in the presence of Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde in Mumbai.
The meeting came days after Shinde denied that his Shiv Sena MLAs were uncomfortable with the inclusion of Ajit Pawar and 8 NCP leaders.
Amid intense discussions among Mahayuti allies over the distribution of portfolios and Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena's insistence on the home ministry, the clarity on the composition of the council of ministers is expected by Sunday, sources said.
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