Mumbai: The grand alliance of Mahayuti will likely finalise the decision over Maharashtra cabinet’s expansion in a crucial meeting on Thursday. It will also resolve the ongoing tussle over ministerial berths and portfolios among the alliance partners.
The speculations come after Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar met Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and Union Home Minister Amit Shah in Delhi today.
Sources told ETV Bharat that the cabinet expansion formula has already been finalised, and the BJP is likely to get the maximum number of ministerial posts.
“There is a strong possibility that the formula of 23-12-9 will be finalised, indicating that the BJP may get 23 posts, while the Shiv Sena and NCP may get 12 and 9 posts, respectively,” they said.
The Shiv Sena is seeking the home minister's post amid the BJP’s resistance. “If the Deputy Chief Minister's post and the Home Minister's post were with the BJP during the previous government, then naturally the Home Minister's post should come to us this time,” Shiv Sena legislator Sanjay Shirsat said.
Political analyst Jayant Mainkar says that the BJP will never give up the crucial portfolio come what may. “The BJP had connived with Rashmi Shukla to create the phone tapping case; such work can be done only through the Home Ministry. Therefore, the BJP will never give this important portfolio to Shiv Sena," he told ETV Bharat.
Meanwhile, expansion is expected to be announced on Saturday (December 14), just two days before the winter session of the Maharashtra assembly. This upcoming session also puts additional pressure on the coalition to complete the cabinet expansion and the swearing-in ceremony of the ministers before the session starts.
Last month, Maharashtra's assembly elections saw a resounding win for the BJP-led Mahayuti. Smaller parties within the alliance gained five seats, while the BJP-Shiv Sena-NCP combination took home 230 seats. In the 288-member house, the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance was limited to 46 seats. Prime Minister Narendra Modi also attended the oath-taking ceremony of the CM in Mumbai last week.
Read More
