The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday named two central observers for its legislature party meeting in Maharashtra to select its leader.
The observers are Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman and former Gujarat chief minister Vijay Rupani. The announcement comes amid ongoing suspense over Maharashtra’s next chief minister.
Over a week after the BJP-led NDA, also called Mahayuti, secured a landslide win in the Maharashtra elections, the new government is yet to be sworn in.
Devendra Fadnavis is expected to be elected as the legislature party leader in a meeting ‘scheduled’ for December 3. All BJP MLAs have been directed to be present in Mumbai for the event.
The Mahayuti alliance secured 230 out of 288 assembly seats, with the BJP winning 132 seats, Shiv Sena claiming 57, and the Ajit Pawar-led NCP taking 41 seats.
The oath-taking ceremony for the new government is set for the evening of December 5 at Azad Maidan in Mumbai, with Prime Minister Modi in attendance.
The BJP is proceeding cautiously as the aspirations of its allies, particularly the Shiv Sena, have risen following the massive election victory. Despite Shinde’s push for unity within the Mahayuti, some allied leaders have expressed differing views.
Former Union minister and BJP leader Raosaheb Danve said that if the undivided Shiv Sena and BJP had contested the elections together, they would have secured more seats.
Meanwhile, Shiv Sena MLA Gulabrao Patil claimed that the Eknath Shinde-led party would have won 90-100 seats had Ajit Pawar’s NCP not been part of the alliance, provoking a strong response from the Ajit Pawar-led party.
The BJP legislature party meeting to elect the leader, who will be the party’s chief ministerial pick, is yet to be held even though Shiv Sena and NCP have elected Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar as their legislature party leaders, respectively.
A senior Mahayuti leader said the allies will jointly decide whether only the chief minister and deputy CMs will take oath on December 5 or ministers will also be sworn in.
Shinde had left for his native village in Satara district on Friday amid speculation that he was not happy with the way the new government was shaping up. He developed a high fever in his village.
Talking to reporters in his village on Sunday before leaving for Mumbai, Shinde said, “I have already said the decision on CM’s post taken by the BJP leadership will be acceptable to me and Shiv Sena and will have my full backing.”
With PTI inputs