Devendra Fadnavis Expands Maharashtra Cabinet; BJP Keeps 19 Berths, Allies Shinde Sena, NCP Get 20

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis expanded his cabinet yesterday, more than three weeks after the assembly election results were announced. A total of 39 ministers were sworn in at a grand ceremony held in Nagpur, which is Fadnavis' constituency.

The state of Maharashtra can accommodate up to 43 ministers, and with today's additions, 42 positions have been filled. Among the newly inducted ministers, 19 are from the BJP, 11 from the Shiv Sena, and 9 from the NCP, including Fadnavis and his deputies. The ceremony at Nagpur's Raj Bhavan was attended by Fadnavis alongside Deputy Chief Ministers Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar.

Prominent BJP leaders such as Chandrashekhar Bawankule, Ashish Shelar, Ganesh Naik, Mangal Prabhat Lodha, Pankaja Munde, Girish Mahajan, Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil, Chandrakant Patil, and Nitesh Rane were sworn in.

From the Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde faction), leaders including Shambhuraj Desai, Dadaji Dagadu Bhuse, Sanjay Rathod, Uday Samant, Gulabrao Patil, and Sanjay Shirsat were inducted into the cabinet. Meanwhile, NCP leaders Aditi Tatkare, Dhananjay Munde, and Hasan Mushrif also took oath as ministers.

On December 5, Devendra Fadnavis was sworn in as Chief Minister, with Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar taking oath as Deputy Chief Ministers at a ceremony in Mumbai attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP stalwarts, and alliance leaders.

The delay in the cabinet expansion was attributed to a tussle over key portfolios. While Eknath Shinde, the former Chief Minister, had to accept the role of Deputy Chief Minister this time, his faction of the Shiv Sena had sought prominent portfolios, particularly the Home Ministry, which the BJP refused to relinquish.

Fadnavis has retained the Home portfolio since his first term as Chief Minister, including the period when Shinde held the top position.

In the assembly elections held earlier this year, the BJP-led Mahayuti alliance achieved a landslide victory, securing 235 seats. The BJP emerged as the single largest party with 132 seats, while the Shiv Sena and the NCP won 57 and 41 seats, respectively.