Fadnavis or Shinde? BJP high command keeps state guessing

Devendra Fadnavis is top contender for the CM’s post. Pic/Kirti Surve Parade; (left) Eknath Shinde’s supporters are pushing for him to be the CM. Pic/Anurag Ahire

The top leadership of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has kept the name of the new Maharashtra Chief Minister under wraps even as supporters in the party and Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde) pushed for their respective favourites. There was no apparent move from the party to hold the newly elected MLAs' meeting in Mumbai. The other two Mahayuti partners have already chosen their leaders. However, speculations were rife after BJP's hot contender, ex-CM Devendra Fadnavis left for New Delhi on Monday.

Soon, it was learnt that Fadnavis was in the national capital to attend Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla's daughter's wedding. His staff said he wasn't scheduled to meet with the party high command, and would return to Mumbai late on Monday night. The contest for the CM's post is between Fadnavis and incumbent Eknath Shinde, but the final say rests with the BJP high command, which is known for throwing surprises. It is said that the BJP's Legislative Party meeting will be held only after the name of the CM is decided. The CM-elect will submit a list of Mahayuti MLAs to the Governor, who, in turn, will invite him to form the government.

Dy CM Devendra Fadnavis.Pic/Satej Shinde (right) Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde. Pic/Ashish Raje

Fadnavis and Shinde supporters continued to root for them. When Shinde Sena's MP Naresh Mhaske expected the BJP to implement the Bihar pattern in Maharashtra to install his party boss as the CM, former Union minister and ex-state BJP chief, Raosaheb Danve, dismissed him, saying that his party hadn't made a ‘Nitish Kumar like' promise to Shinde before the elections.

"It was promised openly to Nitish Kumar before the elections that he would be made the CM notwithstanding his number of MLAs," Danve said at the BJP headquarters in Mumbai, adding that he was at the meeting in which Amit Shah had said the Maharashtra CM would be decided by the three parties after the election results. In Bihar, BJP's ally leader Nitish Kumar, who is known for his flip-flops, was continued as the CM despite being a junior partner in terms of Assembly seats. According to Mhaske, the Shinde camp too expects the same from the BJP, which has won 75 seats more than the partner.

As the political drama continued, the State Legislature has begun preparations for a special session in which the new MLAs would be administered the oath of office. Considering a clear and massive mandate for the Mahayuti, the new CM may not need to prove his majority in the house.

Bhaskar Jadhav, Aaditya made leaders

The Shiv Sena (UBT) chose senior MLA Bhaskar Jadhav as its group leader and Aaditya Thackeray as the leader of the legislative party (both houses). Jadhav said he would ask for the post of Opposition Leader in the Assembly though his party had only 20 MLAs, nine short to make such a claim.

The MLAs met their party chief Uddhav Thackeray at his Kala Nagar residence. Thackeray is learnt to have advised them to fight aggressively in the house without thinking much about the party's small strength. The Congress (16) and NCP-SP (10) are other partners in the MVA.