Rebel Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde will be the next Maharashtra chief minister and will be sworn in at 7.30pm on Thursday, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Devendra Fadnavis announced even as the latter was widely expected to take over the state’s top post following the fall of Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government.
This comes a day after Uddhav Thackeray resigned as the chief minister, marking the end of Maha Vikas Aghadi government rule in the state. Earlier today, the Shinde camp had said that they have started negotiations with the BJP and they will form the government.
“I wouldn’t be part of the government,” Fadnavis announced at the press conference after meeting Maharashtra governor Bhagat Singh Koshiyari at the Raj Bhavan.
The Shinde led government will resolve many issues which have been stalled for last two and a half years effectively. Reservation to Marathas, OBCs and the completion of the infrastructure projects will be the priorities of the new government,” Fadnavis said
The crisis began on June 21 after suspected cross-voting in the Legislative Council elections. Thereafter, Uddhav Thackeray called for an urgent meeting of Shiv Sena MLAs. At the meeting, Sena leader Eknath Shinde and 11 MLAs were untraceable. What followed was a week of resort politics’, with the missing Sena leaders found camping in luxury hotels in Surat, Guwahati and finally in Goa before they got back to Mumbai earlier today
