In a significant development in the politics of Maharashtra, the BJP and NCP have joined hands to form the next government in the state. BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis on Saturday took oath as the state chief minister and Sharad Pawar’s nephew Ajit joining him as his deputy.
In a massive surprise, BJP’s Devendra Fadnavis took oath as the Maharashtra Chief Minister for a second term at Raj Bhavan this morning. The Nationalist Congress Party’s Ajit Pawar will be his deputy.
#WATCH Mumbai: Devendra Fadnavis takes oath as Maharashtra Chief Minister again, oath administered by Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari at Raj Bhawan. pic.twitter.com/kjWAlyMTci
— ANI (@ANI) November 23, 2019
“The BJP wanted to give a stable government to the people of Maharashtra,” Mr Fadnavis said after taking the oath, adding that his party’s ally Shiv Sena “did not follow people’s mandate”.
“I thank the NCP coming in support to form this government. We all know that there was the President’s rule for the last few days… Shiv Sena did not follow the mandate,” he said.
Till yesterday, it was being reported that NCP, Congress and the Shiv Sena were close to forming a government in the state. There were also reports that Shiv Sena-NCP and Congress all have agreed to make Uddhav Thackeray as the Chief Minister of the state.
The state of Maharashtra had plunged into a political crisis after Shiv Sena broke its three-decade-long ties with the BJP after a deadlock appeared between the allies over seat-sharing formula.
The BJP and Sena, which fought the Assembly polls in alliance, had secured a comfortable majority by winning 105 and 56 seats, respectively, in the 288-member Assembly. The Congress and the NCP, pre-poll allies, won 44 and 54 seats, respectively.
