The Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) Legislature Party Leader Devendra Fadnavis was sworn in as the 21st Chief Minister of Maharashtra

By Dr. Siddhartha Ghosh The Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) Legislature Party Leader Devendra Fadnavis was sworn in as the 21st Chief Minister of Maharashtra on Thursday (December 5, 2024) evening in a grand ceremony at Azad Maidan, Mumbai, witnessed by thousands. State Governor C.P. Radhakrishnan administered the oath of office to Mr. Fadnavis, who steered the BJP-led Mahayuti to victory in the Marathi State, in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and several Union Ministers besides Chief Ministers and Deputy Chief Ministers of NDA-ruled States. Mr. Fadnavis’s spouse Amruta and daughter Divija and the family members of Mr. Shinde and Mr. Pawar were seated among the audience. The Opposition MLAs skipped the swearing-in ceremony. This marks the third time Mr. Fadnavis, 54, an MLA from Nagpur South-West, would occupy the coveted Chief Minister’s office on the sixth floor of the Mantralaya (State administrative headquarters). His previous terms were from 2014 to 2019 and briefly in November 2019, when his government lasted only 72 hours due to a lack of majority support. Outgoing Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, leader of a breakaway Shiv Sena faction, took the oath as Deputy Chief Minister, alongside Nationalist

Congress Party (NCP) president Ajit Pawar. No other leaders were inducted into the Council of Ministers, with the Cabinet formation expected in the coming days. The new government was formed after two weeks of negotiations following the November 20 State Assembly polls, whose results were declared on November 23. A special session of the Maharashtra Legislature will be held from December 7 to 9 in Mumbai for the swearingin of newly elected members. The Winter Session is likely to follow in Nagpur from December 16 to 23. Devendra Fadnavis thanks Amit Shah for support in Maharashtra elections Mr. Fadnavis, an RSS swayamsevak, emerged as the frontrunner for the post after the BJP secured 132 seats in the 288-member Assembly. With allies the Shiv Sena and the NCP, the Mahayuti coalition holds a commanding majority of 230 seats. On Wednesday (Dec. 4), Mr. Fadnavis, accompanied by Mr. Shinde and Mr. Pawar, met Governor Radhakrishnan to stake their claim to form the government, presenting Letters of Support from coalition partners. Following the meeting, the Governor invited Mr. Fadnavis to lead the new administration. Downplaying titles, Mr. Fadnavis said, “Chief Minister or Deputy Chief Minister is just a technical arrangement. The three of us — myself, Mr. Shinde, and Mr. Pawar — will work together and

make joint decisions as we have done so far.” His comments came amid reports that Mr. Shinde was unhappy about being denied a second term as Chief Minister. With the backing of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who famously called him “Nagpur’s gift to the country”, Mr. Fadnavis first became Chief Minister in 2014, becoming only the second Brahmin to hold the post after Shiv Sena’s Manohar Joshi, and the first from the BJP. Before him, late Union

Minister Gopinath Munde had reached the position of Deputy Chief Minister in 1995 during the Shiv Sena-BJP Government. Challenges ahead As Mr. Fadnavis takes office for the third time, he faces a complex set of challenges. Chief among them is the unresolved Maratha reservation issue, which continues to spark protests. He also had the responsibility of balancing the interests of the BJP, coalition partners, and the wider electorate.