NEW DELHI: Who will be the next chief minister of Maharashtra? It’s advantage Devendra Fadnavis amid suspense over which Mahayuti leader gets the top job. The BJP, with 132 seats – only 12 less than the half-way mark in the 288-member assembly, is the strongest contender for the post and needs only one ally to form a government. But, the Shiv Sena, despite winning only 57 seats – which is less than half of BJP’s tally, is not giving up easily.The leaders of Shiv Sena, according to reports, feel that it was their leader Eknath Shinde, who as the incumbent chief minister, paved the way for the historic win of the ruling alliance with his governance. They also cite data from opinion poll surveys to claim that Shinde is the most popular leader of the Mahayuti.
‘BJP should follow Bihar model in Maharashtra’
Shiv Sena spokesperson Naresh Mhaske on Monday pitched for Eknath Shinde as the chief minister citing BJP’s arrangement with Nitish Kumar in Bihar. “We feel Shinde should be the chief minister, just like in Bihar where BJP did not look at the numbers but still made JD(U) leader Nitish Kumar the CM. Senior leaders of the Mahayuti (in Maharashtra) will ultimately take a decision,” Mhaske said.
The Lok Sabha member compared the situation to the leadership dynamics in Haryana, where the BJP contested the assembly elections recently under Nayab Singh Saini’s leadership.
“The election in Maharashtra was contested under the leadership of Shinde, Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar. This shows that the alliance’s leadership should be respected,” he said and added: “Shinde has established himself as a commoner. He is the most popular leader in recent surveys by some news channels. His name is the frontrunner.”
Shinde, who has emerged as a strong contender for the post, is not missing any opportunity to assert that his government’s ‘Majhi Ladki Bahin’ scheme was the gamechanger in the elections. On Sunday he met with beneficiaries of the scheme and expressed his gratitude to them for the historic win of the Mahayuti alliance.
Addressing the gathering, CM Shinde said that the government will soon increase the amount to Rs 2100 as promised.
“I am with you all, I thank all Majhi Ladki Bahin for electing me. You all chose Mahayuti, as we promised we will be giving Rs 2100 to all my sisters. This government is yours and you choose this government again. I feel blessed you all came here and gave me blessings. This is a common people’s government and we are working for the growth of Maharashtra,” he said.
However, going by the numbers there’s no way Shiv Sena can dictate terms with the BJP.
Will NCP play the kingmaker?
The NCP, which had hoped to be the kingmaker in government formation, may end up playing a key role in deciding between Fadnavis and Shinde as the next chief minister of the state. Ajit Pawar’s party proved several experts wrong as it won an impressive 41 seats and established its rightful place in the alliance. Ajit Pawar, who was blamed for the drubbing of Mahayuti in Lok Sabha elections earlier this year, is now in a position to play the kingmaker.
Ajit Pawar on Monday said no “formula” was being discussed for the chief minister’s post and a decision on it will be taken together by the Mahayuti partners. “Yesterday, NCP selected me as the party’s leader in the assembly. Eknath Shinde was also elected as Shiv Sena’s leader in the assembly and BJP will also do the same. We will sit together and discuss and will provide a stable government,” he said.
Ajit Pawar also said they will decide what formula to work out on the cabinet formation among the three parties. “There are news reports that government should be formed before November 27 or else there will be President’s rule, but there’s nothing like that,” the NCP leader said.
The NCP supremo may prefer Fadnavis over Shinde as his boss given the fact that as a regional leader Shinde and Shiv Sena would be a bigger future rival.
Will Fadnavis sacrifice, again?
Fadnavis, who served as chief minister of Maharashtra from 2014 to 2019, has led the BJP to its best-ever performance in the state. In 2019, he could not become the chief minister as pre-poll ally Uddhav Thackeray parted ways from the NDA and formed the MVA government with Congress and NCP. In 2022, Fadnavis worked closely with Eknath Shinde to oust the MVA government and pave the way for the return of NDA government. However, the top BJP leadership then decided to give the top job to Eknath Shinde. Fadnavis, who had then announced to stay out of the government, was asked by the party leadership to work as Shinde’s deputy.
With Shinde’s Shiv Sena making strong claims for the top job, it will be interesting to see if Fadnavis, after helping the party win record 132 seats, is ready for another sacrifice in the name of alliance.
While Shinde remained the chief minister of the Mahayuti during the elections, Fadnavis, as deputy CM, played an important role in the governance. In the run up to the polls, when asked by reporters who is the CM face of the Mahayuti vis-à-vis the MVA, Fadnavis evaded a direct reply and said “Our chief minister is sitting here, who is the CM face of the MVA?” He did not say that Shinde was the CM face of the alliance.