Shiv Sena MLAs scramble for berths ahead of Maharashtra cabinet expansion today
The swearing-in ceremony of the Maharashtra cabinet is expected to be held in Nagpur on Sunday evening, just a day before the winter session of the assembly begins.
The announcement will come after weeks of intense discussions between Mahayuti alliance partners – BJP, Shiv Sena and the NCP – that registered a resounding victory in the Maharashtra assembly elections on November 23.
The competition for ministerial positions within the new BJP-led Mahayuti government has intensified with MLAs from the Sena and BJP fiercely vying for positions in the new Cabinet and council of ministers. The first cabinet expansion in Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis’ government comes two weeks after the BJP leader took oath with his two deputies – Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar.
After extensive discussions, debates, and several meetings between senior leaders, a decision has been reached regarding key portfolios and the power-sharing arrangement among the three coalition parties, clearing the way for the induction of new ministers.
The BJP, which won the maximum seats, is expected to introduce new faces during the cabinet expansion. The BJP is likely to get 20-21 ministerial berths, followed by 11-12 for the Sena and 9-10 for the Nationalist Congress Party, reports news agency PTI.
Contest within Shiv Sena
But the most intense competition is within the Shiv Sena, led by Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde. On Friday night, prominent MLAs such as Sanjay Shirsat, Yogesh Kadam, Vijay Shivtare, Bharat Gogawale, and Balaji Kinikar met with Shinde to make their case. Two former ministers, Deepak Kesarkar and Tanaji Sawant, however, were unable to secure an audience with Shinde, despite waiting for over five hours.
The BJP is firm in its stance that tainted or controversial MLAs will not be inducted and has raised objections to the inclusion of Kesarkar, Sawant, Abdul Sattar, and Sanjay Rathod by the Shiv Sena. While the exclusion of Kesarkar and Sawant is unlikely to harm Shinde politically, the inclusion of Sanjay Rathod, who comes from the Banjara community with a significant presence in parts of Vidarbha, is crucial to Shinde’s socio-political calculations.
Rathod has been linked to the suicide of a young woman in Pune, and according to Fadnavis, he should be excluded from the Sena’s list.
Sources also suggest there were complaints of authoritarian behaviour against Abdul Sattar, and Tanaji Sawant, as health minister, had frequent clashes with various health secretaries.
A senior BJP leader told PTI on Friday that 30-32 ministers are likely to take oath on Sunday. Reports say this would include 20 BJP leaders, and the rest from Shiv Sena. The council of ministers in Maharashtra can have a maximum of 43 members, including the chief minister.
Maharashtra assembly election results
In the November 20 assembly polls, the Mahayuti swept to power, winning 230 out of 288 seats in the state. The BJP led with 132 seats, followed by Shinde’s Shiv Sena with 57 and Pawar’s NCP getting 41.