Eknath Shinde to be new Maharashtra CM, will take oath at 7:30 pm today; thanks PM Modi, Fadnavis
Addressing the media, Fadnavis said that following today's swearing-in event, they will have a cabinet enlargement, with Shiv Sena and BJP politicians taking the oath. "I will not participate in governance," Fadnavis added.
FollowIn a big development, BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis on Thursday announced that Shiv Sena rebel leader Eknath Shinde will be sworn in as the new chief minister of Maharashtra. He further said that following today's swearing-in event, they will have a cabinet enlargement, with Shiv Sena and BJP politicians taking the oath. "I will not participate in governance," Fadnavis added.
Addressing the media, the Shiv Sena rebel leader said that the decision that they have taken is committed to Balasaheb's Hindutva and for the development work in the constituencies of our MLAs. "We have 50 MLAs with us," he added.
Eknath Shinde said, "We went to former CM Thackeray with our constituency's grievances and development work along with advising him on need for improvement as we started realizing that it would be difficult for us to win the next elections. We demanded for a natural alliance with BJP."
He said BJP has 120 MLAs but despite that Devendra Fadnavis didn't take the post of CM. "I express my gratitude to him along with PM Modi, Amit Shah and other BJP leaders that they showed generosity and made Balasaheb's Sainik (party-worker) the CM of the state," he added.
Speaking to the media, the former Maharashtra Chief Minister stated that following the 2019 Assembly elections, Uddhav Thackeray's party established a "unholy" coalition with the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and the Congress.
Also Read | Who is Eknath Shinde, the Sena minister posing a threat to Maharashtra government?
Fadnavis said, “We had an alliance with Shiv Sena during the last election. The MVA had delayed several development projects. Two MVA ministers are involved in money laundering case. Everyday Veer Savarkar was insulted. No development work was done under the MVA government. Everyday we were insulted."
"On one hand, Shiv Sena opposed Dawood (Ibrahim) and on the other hand, they kept such a man in the cabinet who went to jail on allegations of helping Dawood. They were in alliance with someone who insulted Savarkar," he added.
Slamming Shiv Sena and their decision to form government with the NCP and Congress, Fadnavis said, "In 2019, BJP and Shiv Sena had an alliance and we got required numbers in Assembly elections. We hoped to form the govt but Shiv Sena chose to get into an alliance with those against whom Balasaheb protested throughout his life." He said Shiv Sena formed an alliance with those who are against Hindutva and Savarkar and Shiv Sena insulted the mandate of the people. The fomer CM added Shiv Sena MLAs were demanding that the alliance with Congress and NCP should be ended but Uddhav Thackeray ignored these MLAs and gave priority to MVA alliance partners, that's why MLAs intensified their voices.
Also Read | 'Were fed up, felt insulted': Rebel MLAs write an emotional letter to Uddhav Thackeray
The announcement comes after Fadnavis and Shinde met Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari and staked claim to form the government.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray presented his resignation to state Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari at Raj Bhavan on Wednesday night. According to Raj Bhavan sources, the Governor accepted the resignation and requested him to serve as Chief Minister till a replacement is found.
Also Read | Rebel Sena MLAs get relief from Supreme Court, but judges refuse to order Maha floor test
