21 July,2023 03:02 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
File Photo/PTI
Devendra Fadnavis is an Indian politician and a prominent leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). He was born on July 22, 1970, in Nagpur, Maharashtra, India. Fadnavis has served as the Chief Minister of Maharashtra, one of the largest states in India, from October 2014 to November 2019.
Fadnavis began his political career at a young age and quickly rose through the ranks within the BJP. He was elected as a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) from Nagpur in 1999 and has been re-elected multiple times since then.
During his tenure as Chief Minister, Devendra Fadnavis initiated various developmental projects and reforms in Maharashtra. He focused on infrastructure development, urban planning, and efforts to improve the ease of doing business in the state. He was also instrumental in implementing the "Jalayukta Shivar" scheme to combat drought and water scarcity in rural areas.
Fadnavis is known for his administrative acumen and clean image in politics. He played a crucial role in expanding the BJP's presence in Maharashtra and leading the party to victory in the 2014 Maharashtra Legislative Assembly elections.
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Fadnavis hails from a politically active family. He holds a law degree from Law College, Nagpur, and has a postgraduate diploma in Business Management and a diploma in Project Management from the DSE Foundation in Germany. He started his political career at a young age and quickly worked his way up through the ranks of the BJP, serving in various roles within the party, including the president of the Maharashtra BJP from 2013 to 2014.
Also read: Devendra Fadnavis birthday: All you need to know about the BJP leader
His political career began at a very young age, in 1992. He was elected as the Councilor at Nagpur Municipal Corporation and served two consecutive terms. He has the distinction of being the second youngest Mayor in India. He has been the youngest Mayor of Nagpur and has been the only person to be reelected to the position of âMayor in Council'. Fadnavis has been the Mayor of Nagpur twice. Thereafter he has been elected as the MLA - Member of the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly for five consecutive terms. At 29, he won his first Assembly election in 1999. Devendra Fadnavis represents the Nagpur South West constituency.
In October 2014, Fadnavis became the 18th Chief Minister of Maharashtra, leading the first BJP-led government in the state. As Chief Minister, he focused on addressing key issues such as agriculture, infrastructure, urban development, and social welfare.
After the 2019 Maharashtra Assembly elections, Fadnavis served as the Leader of the Opposition in the state legislature, continuing to play a vital role in Maharashtra's politics.
In 2013, the BJP leadership appointed Fadnavis as the Maharashtra party president in the run-up to the 2014 elections. Under Fadnavis' leadership, the BJP had won 133 of the state Assembly's total 288 seats even though it had then fought the polls alone since its alliance with the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena had broken following their differences on the seat-sharing formula. This was the BJP's highest tally in the Assembly following which the BJP declared Fadnavis as the party's CM face. Soon afterwards, the Shiv Sena returned to join the BJP-led ruling alliance under CM Fadnavis that continued till 2019.