Maharashtra Govt Formation: BJP Appoints Nirmala Sitharaman, Vijay Rupani As Observers

The BJP on Monday named Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and former Gujarat chief minister Vijay Rupani as central observers for its Maharashtra legislature party's meeting, where the MLAs will elect their leader, who is likely to be the state's next chief minister. Maharashtra BJP president Chandrashekhar Bawankule has said that the oath-taking ceremony of the new Mahayuti government will take place on December 5 evening at the Azad Maidan in south Mumbai.

The BJP MLAs will meet before the ceremony to elect their leader. Though the party has made no announcement, former chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, the deputy chief minister in the outgoing government, is being seen as the frontrunner for the key position. The party's two main allies, the Shiv Sena and Nationalist Congress Party, are each tipped to be given deputy CM positions in the new government.

BJP's latest move came hours after Shiv Sena MP from Kalyan and son of Eknath Shinde, Shrikant Shinde termed junked news of him being next Deputy CM of Maharashtra. Calling social media speculations as rumours only, Shinde added that he is not in the race for any post.

"After the elections results, the formation of government is delayed a little and that is why so many rumours are floating around and one is that I am going to be the deputy chief minister in the new government. I want to tell everyone that this is completely baseless and false, there is no fact in this. I had already a chance to become a minister in the Union Cabinet after Lok Sabha elections, but I chose to work for my party organisation and it is still like that, I have no desire for a position in power," Shrikant Shinde posted on X.