Maharashtra temporary chief minister Eknath Shinde described the first post-election meeting with Union minister Amit Shah and BJP president JP Nadda as “good and positive” amid ongoing speculation over the chief ministerial choice of the Mahayuti alliance. A later meeting will probably pick the ultimate name for the chief minister’s post, according to Eknath Shinde.
“The meeting was good and positive. This was the first meeting. We discussed with Amit Shah and JP Nadda…There will be another meeting of the Mahayuti. In this meeting, a decision will be taken about who will be the Chief Minister. The meeting will be held in Mumbai,” Eknath Shinde told reporters.
Eknath Shinde had earlier reaffirmed that the chief minister’s position was unhindered and that “Ladla Bhai” is a title that means more to him than anything else.
“I cleared my role in the press conference yesterday that there are no obstacles regarding the chief minister of Mahayuti. This ‘ladla bhai’ has arrived in Delhi and the ‘ladla bhai’ is a designation higher than anything else for me,” Shinde said before the meeting.
On Wednesday, Shinde had declared that he would support Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s choice of the state’s chief minister.
Amit Shah and BJP national president JP Nadda were present at the Mahayuti alliance’s first formal meeting on Thursday, which included Eknath Shinde, BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis, NCP President Ajit Pawar, and other Mahayuti leaders.
Shinde, Fadnavis, and Pawar departed the national capital late at night following the meeting. The leaders gathered to deliberate on the formation of the new government in Maharashtra.
In order to determine the state’s power-sharing arrangement, Union Home Minister Amit Shah met with the heads of the three political parties that make up the BJP-led Mahayuti alliance on Thursday.
According to reports, Amit Shah has approved two deputy chief ministers, one from each of the Shiv Sena and the NCP, despite the BJP being expected to retain the position of chief minister.
At a gathering of Mumbai’s MLAs on Saturday, the BJP is anticipated to select their candidate for the position of chief minister. Prior to this, BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis stressed that there were no internal conflicts within the Mahayuti alliance and that the leaders would be consulted before a decision was made regarding the Chief Minister.
“In our Mahayuti alliance, there has never been a difference of opinion. We have always made decisions collectively. Before the elections, we announced that the decision regarding the Chief Minister’s post would be taken collectively after the results,” he said.
Although the results of the Maharashtra Assembly election were announced on November 23, the dominant Mahayuti alliance, led by the Bharatiya Janata Party, has not yet decided on a chief minister. In the 280-member Maharashtra Assembly, the BJP gained 132 seats, making it the largest party. Its partners, the NCP under Ajit Pawar and the Shiv Sena under Eknath Shinde, won 41 and 57 seats, respectively.
