The press conference of the Mahayuti allies in Mumbai after they staked claim to form government in Maharashtra witnessed some banter thanks to Ajit Pawar, a 'veteran' deputy chief minister.
Outgoing Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, who returned to Mumbai from New Delhi on Friday morning, is travelling to his native village in Satara district amid continuing suspense over his successor a week after the assembly poll results. Shinde had told reporters in New Delhi on late Thursday night that the next meeting of the Mahayuti alliance on government formation will be held in Mumbai on Friday. However, the caretaker CM, who heads the Shiv Sena, is travelling to his native village Dare in Satara district in western Maharashtra and the meeting is now expected to take place on Sunday, the sources said. The Shiv Sena leader has repeatedly said he would not be an obstacle in the government formation and abide by the decisions taken by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah on the next chief minister. Different viewpoints are emerging in the Shiv Sena over Shinde's place in the next government to be headed by the BJP, the biggest constituent in the Mahayuti, which posted a thumping win in the just-held assembly polls. Many leaders in the Shiv Sena are asking Shinde to accept deputy CM's post if offered by the BJP. However, another section feels it wouldn't be right for him to accept No. 2 position after serving as CM for more than two-and-a-half years, the sources said. "The government formation process will start after the BJP announces its legislature party leader," they said. During his Delhi trip, Shinde had met Shah and discussed formation of the next government in the state. His deputies in the outgoing state cabinet Devendra Fadnavis (BJP) and Ajit Pawar (NCP) had also met the senior BJP leader. Talking to reporters in the national capital, Shinde called the discussion good and positive. Shinde, Fadnavis and Pawar had also met BJP president J P Nadda.
The formation of a new government in Maharashtra has been delayed due to a disagreement between the Shiv Sena and BJP over who should be the next chief minister. Shiv Sena insists on Eknath Shinde continuing as CM while the BJP favors Devendra Fadnavis. The delay comes despite the BJP-led coalition winning a landslide victory in the recent assembly elections. Sources suggest that the coalition has not reached a consensus on the CM, with various leaders from both parties voicing their opinions on the matter.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has criticized the State Election Commission's decision to postpone some local body elections, calling it unfair to candidates. The decision follows petitions and sub judice matters, which Fadnavis argues should not halt the election process. Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde also expressed disappointment, while tensions rise between BJP and Shiv Sena in Sindhudurg ahead of local polls.
Newly-appointed Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Sunetra Pawar has been allocated the portfolios of State Excise Duty, Sports and Youth Affairs and Minorities Development and Aukaf.
The death of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar has created a leadership crisis within the NCP, raising questions about the party's future and potential reunification with the Sharad Pawar-led NCP (SP).
The process to merge the Nationalist Congress Party-Sharadchandra Pawar and the Nationalist Congress Party may now face a roadblock due to the death of Ajit Pawar, said Sharad Pawar on Saturday.
Sunetra Pawar, wife of the late Ajit Pawar, has been appointed as the first woman Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra, marking a new chapter for the NCP and presenting her with the challenge of leading the party.
Shinde was reportedly not happy as he had to cede the top post to the ally BJP, and was reluctant to take the deputy CM post.
'When a grassroots worker has laboured day and night for the organisation, does the party not have a responsibility to recognise and uplift such workers?'
Maharashtra minister and Bharatiya Janata Party leader Chandrashekhar Bawankule has said that Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar should refrain from criticising the saffron outfit and not force it to open 'pages from the past'.
Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Shirsat has demanded that the party be given the crucial home department in the new Maharashtra government, indicating fissures among the Mahayuti allies. He also alleged attempts to sideline caretaker Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, who is reportedly upset with the BJP's decision to claim the chief minister's post.
Comedian Kunal Kamra has been granted interim anticipatory bail by the Madras High Court in a case filed against him for allegedly making defamatory remarks against Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde during a stand-up comedy show. Kamra, who resides in Tamil Nadu, was summoned by the Mumbai Police and feared arrest, prompting him to seek bail from the Madras HC. The court granted him bail until April 7, on the condition that he executes a bond to the satisfaction of the judicial magistrate at Vanur in Villupuram district, Tamil Nadu.
MNS chief Raj Thackeray met Shiv Sena (UBT) president Uddhav Thackeray to finalize seat-sharing arrangements for the upcoming civic polls. The meeting occurred as the deadline for filing nominations ended. The alliance aims to challenge the BJP and Shinde-led Shiv Sena in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation elections.
Polling for 2,869 seats spread across 893 wards in these municipal corporations began amid tight security at 7.30 am and will conclude at 5.30 pm. A total of 3.48 crore voters are eligible to decide the fate of 15,931 candidates.
This comes after Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee hinted at foul play behind the plane crash and demanded the Supreme Court's probe into the incident.
The name of the Maharashtra chief minister will be announced on Wednesday, a day ahead of the swearing-in ceremony of the Mahayuti government, after the Bharatiya Janata Party elects its legislature party leader, a senior functionary said on Monday.
Rameshwar Naik replaced Mangesh Chivte, considered a close aide of former CM Eknath Shinde.
Shrikant Shinde on Monday said the swearing-in ceremony of the Mahayuti coalition government has been a bit delayed, and currently there are lot of discussions and rumours.
Karnataka on shaky ground against Punjab despite Rahul's fifty; Desai puts Saurashtra on cusp of win
Counting of votes has begun in the Maharashtra municipal corporation elections, with a focus on the Mumbai battle between the BJP-led alliance and the Thackeray factions.
Ahead of the crucial legislature party meeting scheduled for Wednesday, Bharatiya Janata Party leader Devendra Fadnavis met with caretaker Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Tuesday, the first in-person meeting since their discussions in Delhi last week for government formation.
Shinde said he had "good and positive" discussions with Amit Shah and J P Nadda.
Unless the primary market momentum slows, smallcap stocks will stay subdued.
'I am simply highlighting a wrongdoing. This is why my complaint has merit, and the chief minister has ordered an inquiry.'
The Opposition in Maharashtra boycotted the government's customary tea party on the eve of the Winter session, citing its failure to appoint leaders of the opposition (LoPs) in both houses of the state legislature.
From start to finish, Dharmaveer 2 feels less like a biopic and more like propaganda crafted for Eknath Shinde's political gain, observes Prasanna D Zore.
While the BJP and Shiv Sena have announced a seat-sharing pact, another constituent of Mahayuti, the NCP, headed by Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, is contesting the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation polls separately.
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has demanded the death penalty for those involved in the murder of sarpanch Santosh Deshmukh, calling the crime "heinous." Shinde said that no one involved in the case, including Walmik Karad, a close aide of NCP minister Dhananjay Munde, will be spared. Deshmukh was abducted and tortured to death on December 9 after he resisted an extortion attempt targeting an energy company operating a windmill project in the area. Karad was arrested in the extortion case linked to the murder after he surrendered to police in Pune on December 31.
Mumbai police have apprehended two persons from Maharashtra's Buldhana district in connection with emails threatening to blow up Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde's car, officials said on Friday.
'This daylight robbery of elections is happening in the commercial capital of India, Mumbai city, so you can imagine what they will do to win elections in the interiors of India.'
Asked to whom the demand was made, Gogavale said it was probably Prime Minister Narendra Modi or Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
Sawant, MP of Mumbai South, claimed that his remark was being misinterpreted, while Shaina, who is contesting from Mumbadevi assembly seat in the city, said it showed the mentality of the Uddhav Thackeray-led party.
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.
Maharashtra's outgoing Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Sunday said the Bharatiya Janata Party will decide on the new CM and assured his full support while ruling out differences among Mahayuti allies over the government formation.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde was on Sunday night elected as the leader of the Shiv Sena Legislature Party.
Parties in Maharashtra are engaged in intense negotiations to finalize seat sharing arrangements for the upcoming Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections scheduled for January 15.
'This is injustice to Shinde. Are they trying to say that he is not good enough to be the CM?'
After weeks of negotiations over seat-sharing, the Mahayuti alliance appears to have broken down ahead of municipal corporation elections in Latur and Jalna, with partners deciding to contest the January 15 polls independently.
'I don't know if she is doing it willingly or not, but she is respecting the sentiments of the party.'
