On Friday, Ajit caused a flutter in the party when he sent his resignation as the MLA from Baramati segment to Legislative Assembly Speaker Haribhau Bagade, which has been accepted.
Fadnavis also conceded that issues of coordination exist with the Shiv Sena and the NCP.
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.
Discordant voices emerged on Sunday from the Mahayuti even as the alliance continued to remain in the throes of government formation more than week after it swept the Maharashtra assembly polls.
Bharatiya Janata Party MLA Rahul Narwekar was on Monday elected unopposed as the speaker of the 15th Maharashtra legislative assembly.
Three years after he teamed up with Nationalist Congress Party leader Ajit Pawar in an overnight coup to form the government in Maharashtra, Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Monday said the exercise had NCP chief Sharad Pawar's backing.
The Centre on Wednesday accorded Z plus -- the highest category of armed VIP security cover -- to Pawar, official sources had said.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Friday sought to make light of his meeting with Shiv Sena-Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray head and political rival Uddhav Thackeray a day ago and noted his government was stable with support from deputy CMs Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar.
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.
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde addressed questions about advertisements featuring only CM Fadnavis, asserting that there is no race for credit among Mahayuti allies and that they are working as a team. He also commented on the Maratha reservation issue and the government's efforts to address it.
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.
Maharashtra is set to hold local body elections for municipal councils and nagar panchayats, marking the first phase of a Supreme Court-mandated process. The elections are seen as a key indicator of political sentiment following the BJP-led Mahayuti's victory in the assembly elections.
Nationalist Congress Party leader Praful Patel has claimed 51 out of the 53 party MLAs had told NCP chief Sharad Pawar that a possibility of joining hands with the Bharatiya Janata Party should be explored after the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government in Maharashtra collapsed last year.
It is not clear how much money the government will transfer into the bank accounts of women in Maharashtra.
Asked if the investigation by the Enforcement Directorate prompted some NCP leaders to join the BJP-Shiv Sena government, Pawar said he didn't have any information regarding this.
Exigencies of electoral politics and individual ambitions often stoke family feuds and sibling rivalries.
The Maharashtra government is set to expand its cabinet on December 15 with 30-32 ministers taking the oath of office at a ceremony in Nagpur. The week-long winter session of the state legislature is scheduled to begin in Nagpur on December 16. The BJP-led government, which came to power after the November 20 assembly polls, has seen its fair share of twists and turns in the cabinet formation process. The BJP is likely to get 20-21 ministerial berths, followed by 11-12 for the Sena and 9-10 for the NCP.
Ajit Pawar said CM Shinde is not capable of getting big projects to Maharashtra.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Pune in Maharashtra on Thursday was cancelled following heavy rains in the city, sources said.
Pawar also said it is the moral responsibility of the major Opposition parties in Maharashtra to protect in the state assembly polls the interests of smaller allies, which were part of the coalition in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) president Sharad Pawar on Thursday said his decision to step down from the post was taken for the future of the party and to create a new leadership.
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray launched a scathing attack on the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), questioning the outcome of the recent Maharashtra assembly elections and alleging hypocrisy in the BJP's stance on corruption. He also hinted at internal changes within the MNS, emphasizing the need for discipline and a renewed focus on the party's goals.
The race for the Maharashtra Chief Minister post has intensified following the Mahayuti coalition's landslide victory in the state assembly polls. The Shiv Sena has backed Eknath Shinde for the top job, citing the Bihar model, while the BJP has thrown its weight behind Devendra Fadnavis, emphasizing his leadership qualities and understanding of the state. The BJP's preference for Fadnavis stems from its dominance in the alliance with 132 seats, compared to Shiv Sena's 57 seats. Amidst these developments, both parties have held meetings to discuss the matter, while Fadnavis and other BJP leaders have denied any dispute over the CM's post.
Now, irrespective of who supports whom, only a floor test in the assembly will decide if this government can continue or not.
'Marathi-speaking people of Mumbai have now emerged as a consolidated vote bank standing firmly behind the Thackerays.'
The Shiv Sena-Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray on Tuesday fielded Milind Narvekar, a close aide of party chief Uddhav Thackeray, in the biennial elections to 11 seats from the legislative council, taking the number of candidates in the fray to 12.
It was a mixed bag for 11 seats with more than 35 percent Muslim voters, where six candidates of the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi emerged victorious in the Maharashtra assembly polls on Saturday, while four seats went to the Bharatiya Janata Party-led Mahayuti alliance.
Counting of votes in the Maharashtra assembly elections will begin at 8 am on Saturday, with all eyes on the outcome of the battle between the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party-led Mahayuti coalition and the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance, which is seeking to make a comeback.
The Maharashtra Assembly elections are taking place today, with the ruling BJP-led Mahayuti alliance seeking to retain power and the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) hoping for a comeback. The campaign saw prominent leaders like Narendra Modi, Amit Shah, Rahul Gandhi, and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra crisscrossing the state to garner votes. The Mahayuti is banking on popular schemes while the MVA focuses on issues like caste-based census and social justice. The elections have also seen a significant rise in the number of candidates and voters.
Now, the state has an unprecedented situation where there are six major political players with three on each side.
'The timing of the current episode involving Ajit Pawar is important. The episode has elements of deceit, betrayal and falsehood intertwined'
Erroneous payments were made to 77,980 women and 12,431 men, many of whom did not qualify for the scheme's benefits.
Shiv Sena-Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray leader Sanjay Raut on Wednesday claimed that Uddhav Thackeray planned to make Eknath Shinde the chief minister of Maharashtra after the 2019 polls, but first the Bharatiya Janata Party and later Maha Vikas Aghadi allies including Sharad Pawar played a spoilsport.
'Now there is no fight between us (Thackerays); now the fight is with them.'
The Opposition is also expected to target the Eknath Shinde-led government on shifting of mega projects like Foxconn to Gujarat, according to political observers.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah held discussions for seat sharing in Maharashtra for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections with coalition partners Shiv Sena chief Eknath Shinde and Nationalist Congress Party president Ajit Pawar.
'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.'
Fadnavis took oath as chief minister like a "thief on the run", it said in sarcastic remarks.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and his deputies Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar took charge of their new official responsibilities at the state secretariat 'Mantralaya' here after taking oath of office on Thursday evening.
Out of the 24 NCP MLAs who attended the session, Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, cabinet ministers Chhagan Bhujbal, Dilip Walse Patil, Hasan Mushrif, Aditi Tatkare, Sanjay Bansode, Dhananjay Munde, Anil Patil and Dharmarao Atram were seated on the ruling side.
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