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Tag: Eknath Shinde

  • BJP curveball: Shinde CM, Fadnavis Deputy

    Express News Service

    MUMBAI: With the BJP on Thursday pulling off a massive surprise by offering the chief minister’s post to rebel Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde and persuading a reluctant Devendra Fadnavis to be his deputy, it appears to have killed multiple birds in one stone. From his humble beginnings as an auto driver to that of the CM, the rise of the four-time MLA and twice minister has indeed been meteoric.Also read: Eknath Shinde: Former auto driver and Sena street fighter now in driving seat in MaharashtraAt the oath-taking ceremony, Shinde invoked Sena founder Balasaheb Thackeray and Anand Dighe saying his government will follow in their footsteps. Sources saw in the day’s developments a masterstroke by Union home minister Amit Shah.

    “By making Shinde the CM, the BJP has not just engineered a vertical split in elected representatives of the Shiv Sena, it also divided the party. More importantly, it has diminished the Thackeray brand and reduced him to a caricature. And Shinde will be controlled by the top leadership of the BJP for future manoeuvres,” said a source requesting anonymity.

    Besides, Shah clipped the wings of Fadnavis, the source said. “Fadnavis was CM from 2014 to 2019. He was also projected as a potential prime ministerial candidate after Narendra Modi. And he has tacit support from the RSS. He was not ready to work as Shinde’s No 2. But Shah persuaded Modi that the Shinde-Fadnavis team would be best in the larger interests of the BJP in Maratha dominated Maharashtra.

    Modi then called Fadnavis and persuaded him to take the job.” Shinde was light-weight minister in the Fadnavis cabinet earlier. The roles reversed on Thursday with Shinde becoming his boss. Fadnavis was hoping to be the new CM. “But it appears that the party leadership decided to not only rub salt on his wounds but also humiliate him by asking him to be deputy CM,” sources said.

    Pawar quip on FadnavisNCP chief Sharad Pawar said the body language of Devendra Fadnavis showed he was not happy with being asked to be the deputy CM but accepted it against his will because of the discipline RSS inculcated in him. He also said drawing as many as 38 Shiv Sena rebels is not easy but Eknath Shinde pulled it off. “I have spoken with him over the phone and congratulated him.”

  • BJP curveball: Eknath Shinde new Maharashtra CM, Fadnavis Deputy as Uddhav gets cornered further

    Express News Service

    MUMBAI: With the BJP on Thursday pulling off a massive surprise by offering the chief minister’s post to rebel Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde and persuading a reluctant Devendra Fadnavis to be his deputy, it appears to have killed multiple birds in one stone.

    From his humble beginnings as an auto driver to that of the CM, the rise of the four-time MLA and twice minister has indeed been meteoric.Also read: Eknath Shinde: Former auto driver and Sena street fighter now in driving seat in MaharashtraAt the oath-taking ceremony, Shinde invoked Sena founder Balasaheb Thackeray and Anand Dighe saying his government will follow in their footsteps. Sources saw in the day’s developments a masterstroke by Union home minister Amit Shah.

    “By making Shinde the CM, the BJP has not just engineered a vertical split in elected representatives of the Shiv Sena, it also divided the party. More importantly, it has diminished the Thackeray brand and reduced him to a caricature. And Shinde will be controlled by the top leadership of the BJP for future manoeuvres,” said a source requesting anonymity.

    Besides, Shah clipped the wings of Fadnavis, the source said.

    “Fadnavis was CM from 2014 to 2019. He was also projected as a potential prime ministerial candidate after Narendra Modi. And he has tacit support from the RSS. He was not ready to work as Shinde’s No 2. But Shah persuaded Modi that the Shinde-Fadnavis team would be best in the larger interests of the BJP in Maratha-dominated Maharashtra. Modi then called Fadnavis and persuaded him to take the job.”

    Shinde was lightweight minister in the Fadnavis cabinet earlier. The roles reversed on Thursday with Shinde becoming his boss.

    Fadnavis was hoping to be the new CM.

    “But it appears that the party leadership decided to not only rub salt on his wounds but also humiliate him by asking him to be deputy CM,” sources said.

    Pawar quip on Fadnavis

    NCP chief Sharad Pawar said the body language of Devendra Fadnavis showed he was not happy with being asked to be the deputy CM but accepted it against his will because of the discipline RSS inculcated in him.

    He also said drawing as many as 38 Shiv Sena rebels is not easy but Eknath Shinde pulled it off.

    “I have spoken with him over the phone and congratulated him.”

  • Fadnavis didn’t seem happy accepting Deputy CM’s post but followed orders: Sharad Pawar

    By PTI

    PUNE: NCP chief Sharad Pawar on Thursday claimed that BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis did not appear to be happy while accepting the deputy chief minister’s post in Eknath Shinde’s government.

    While rebel Shiv Sena leader Shinde was sworn in as the new chief minister of Maharashtra following the collapse of the Shiv Sena-NCP-Congress government, Fadnavis, a former CM who had said he would remain outside, took oath as Shinde’s deputy.

    “I think Fadnavis has not accepted the number two position happily. His facial expression said it all,” Pawar told reporters in Pune.

    ALSO READ| The Eknath Shinde story: Auto driver who shook Shiv Sena’s foundations

    “(But) He is from Nagpur and he has worked as a `swayamsevak’ (with the RSS) and there, when an order comes, it has to be followed,” the NCP chief said, adding that Fadnavis might have accepted a junior position due to this ‘sanskar’ (values).

    He also spoke about the alleged misuse of central agencies under the BJP government, claiming that he received “love letters” from the Income Tax department regarding his election affidavits in 2004, 2009 and 2014.

    Pawar also said that the Eknath Shinde faction, which was camping in Guwahati after rebelling against the Uddhav Thackeray government, had not expected that their leader would become anything more than a deputy CM.

    “But after the BJP’s central leadership gave the orders, chief minister’s post was given to Shinde. Nobody had an inkling about it. I think Shinde himself had no idea. The second surprise, which I do not think is a surprise really, is that Devendra Fadnavis, who worked as CM for five years and then opposition leader, had to take the post of Deputy CM following directions from the central leadership,” said Pawar.

    He, however, noted that there have been such instances in the past too.

    ALSO READ | Did a film screening foretell the Eknath Shinde-Uddhav Thackeray split?

    Pawar also rejected rebel Sena MLAs’ claims that the Sena’s tie-up with NCP and Congress was the primary reason for their rebellion.

    ““This allegation is baseless. It has no connection with NCP and Congress. Something has to be told to people (as an excuse), which is why NCP and Congress are being blamed,” he said.

    Pawar also said that he spoke to Shinde and congratulated him. “Once a person becomes chief minister, he is the CM of the state. He becomes the head of the state and I expect that he would work towards solving the issues of people,” the NCP chief said.

    Asked about the collapse of the MVA government and what went wrong, Pawar said the Uddhav Thackeray-led government had not fallen short on any front.

    “Shinde showed the capability of taking away 39 MLAs, and the success (of his rebellion) lies there. I learnt that the preparation for this was going on for long, as travelling to Surat, from there to Guwahati and then to Goa, these arrangements do not take place suddenly,” he said.

    As to questions being raised about Uddhav Thackeray’s leadership, Pawar said once the Shiv Sena chief reposed faith in someone, he gave that person full responsibility.

    “We saw that he had given all the responsibility of the party organization and Legislative Assembly to Shinde. He (Shinde) was given the reins, and I do not know if this development was the fall-out,” the NCP chief said.

    Asked about parallels being drawn between the developments of 45 years ago when he toppled the Vasantdada Patil government and became chief minister, Pawar said there were no complications like today then.

    “We just decided and told Vasantdada that they (the MLAs in Pawar’s group) wanted to resign, and after that, he also resigned,” Pawar said.

    About the Supreme Court allowing a floor test to proceed in Maharashtra, Pawar said the BJP and Shinde faction had a majority, and once such a situation becomes clear, it should be accepted.

    “Uddhav Thackeray, after realising that he has lost majority, resigned gracefully,” he added.

    About accusations that Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut was responsible for the implosion within the party, Pawar said the Shiv Sena was not finished yet, and cited the examples of past rebellions which it survived.

    The biggest challenge before the new government would be to gain “credibility” and people’s faith, the veteran politician said.

    Asked if the MVA alliance will continue in the coming polls in Maharashtra, Pawar said that no decision has been taken in this regard yet.

  • Eknath Shinde: Former auto driver and Sena street fighter now in driving seat in Maharashtra

    By Online Desk

    MUMBAI: Eknath Sambhaji Shinde, who on Thursday became the 20th Chief Minister of Maharashtra, once drove auto-rickshaw to earn a living before rising as a formidable Shiv Sena leader.

    The 58-year-old leader who hails from western Maharashtra’s Satara district shifted to Thane, a Sena bastion adjacent to Mumbai, in his young days and started his political career in the same city.

    The four-time MLA, who held the urban development and PWD portfolios in the previous Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government led by Uddhav Thackeray, never hid his humble origins.

    The Eknath Shinde story: Auto driver who shook Shiv Sena’s foundations

    On the contrary, he made it a point to mention it to underscore how he has been indebted to the Shiv Sena and its founder, late Bal Thackeray for his rise in Maharashtra politics.

    Born on February 9, 1964, Shinde dropped out of college before completing graduation. After moving to Thane, he soon found his calling as one among thousands of Shiv Sena cadres who were ever-ready to hit the streets at the command of Bal Thackeray.

    Thackeray formed Shiv Sena in 1966 as a party fighting for the rights of the ‘sons-of-the-soil’ Marathi-speakers, and later aggressively championed the cause of `Hindutva’.

    ALSO READ | Did a film screening foretell the Eknath Shinde-Uddhav Thackeray split?

    As Shinde joined the Sena in Thane, he found a mentor in local party stalwart Anand Dighe. He became Dighe’s deputy and strengthened the party in Thane-Palghar region after Dighe’s sudden death in 2001.

    The sitting MLA from Kopri-Pachpakhadi in Thane city, Shinde was once a quintessential Shiv Sena street fighter.

    He faces dozens of criminal cases for charges such as ‘voluntarily causing hurt by dangerous weapons’ and rioting, registered during various party agitations.

    He became a corporator in the Thane Municipal Corporation in 1997 and won his maiden Assembly election in 2004.

    In 2005 he was made the Sena’s Thane district chief.

    Currently he is in his fourth term as an MLA, while his son Dr Shrikant Shinde is the Lok Sabha MP from Kalyan in the district.

    WATCH |

    Shinde was appointed the Leader of Opposition in the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly for a brief period in 2014 when the Sena initially refused to join the Devendra Fadnavis cabinet.

    The party later joined the BJP-led government, and Shinde became a cabinet minister.

    His closeness to Chief Minister Fadnavis set tongues wagging.

    It was also noted that the BJP contested elections to all civic bodies in Maharashtra in 2016 against the alliance partner Shiv Sena, except in Thane, Shinde’s home turf.

    When the Shiv Sena snapped ties with the BJP, and Sena president Uddhav Thackeray became chief minister of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government with the NCP and Congress as allies after the 2019 elections, Shinde became a cabinet minister for the second time.

    ALSO READ | ‘Hanuman Chalisa effect led to fall of Uddhav government in Maharashtra’: MP minister

    During the COVID-19 pandemic, despite the NCP handling the health ministry, it was Shinde-controlled Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation that set up healthcare centres in Mumbai and its satellite cities to treat coronavirus patients.

    His closeness to Fadnavis apparently made the Sena leadership suspicious.

    Shinde was made guardian minister of the Naxal-hit Gadchiroli district (along with Thane), which was seen as a put-down.

    Shinde, however, remained a key Sena leader, as he had developed a strong support base of his own.

    He is known to be always accessible to party workers and colleagues, and visits the homes of ordinary party workers often.

    After managing to take away majority of Sena MLAs with him and becoming chief minister, Shinde’s next challenge would be to wrest control the party organization from Uddhav Thackeray and his loyalists.

    (With agency inputs)

  • Eknath Shinde takes oath as Maharashtra CM, Devendra Fadnavis his deputy

    By Online Desk

    Rebel Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde on Thursday took oath as Maharashtra Chief Minister and BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis as his deputy, a day after Uddhav Thackeray announced his resignation from the top post bringing to an end the 31-month-old Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government.

    On the request of BJP president JP Nadda, Fadnavis had decided to join the government in the interest of the state, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said on Thursday evening.

    During a press meet earlier in the day, Fadnavis had said that BJP would support a new minority government led by Shiv Sena rebel group leader Eknath Shinde, who will be sworn in as the Chief Minister of Maharashtra.

    The meteoric rise of Shinde rivals Bollywood’s film scripts. An auto-driver with humble beginnings, he went on to become the right hand man of party chief Uddhav Thackeray, and his nemesis.

    Shinde is a four-time MLA and two-time minister. Skilled in organising people and events, Shinde’s spark was discovered and initially used by Sena’s Thane district president Nanad Dighe. That’s how auto-driver Shinde started driving Dighe’s car.

    He then became the eyes and ears of Dighe, who used to be known as the “king of Thane”. Closeness with Dighe helped him get elected as a corporator in the Thane Municipal Corporation. Subsequently, Shinde became an MLA and the rest is history. Over the time, he reportedly amassed huge wealth and clout in the party. In the Maha Vikas Aghadi government led by Uddhav Thackeray, Shinde was handling plum portfolios of urban development and state road transport.

    In 2019, when Sena was bargaining with the BJP over sharing of power, Shinde was dreaming of deputy chief minister post. That dream was clipped when Uddhav Thackeray decided to form government with the help of NCP and Congress.

  • Eknath Shinde takes oath as Maharashtra CM, Devendra Fadnavis as his deputy

    By Online Desk

    Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde was on Thursday sworn in as Maharashtra chief minister, while BJP’s Devendra Fadnavis took oath as deputy chief minister.

    Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari administered the oath of office to them at Raj Bhavan in south Mumbai shortly after 7.30 pm.

    Shinde began by paying tributes to late Shiv Sena leaders Bal Thackeray and Anand Dighe. His supporters shouted slogans hailing Thackeray and Dighe as he finished taking the oath.

    Earlier on Thursday, BJP president J P Nadda said Fadnavis would be part of the new Maharashtra cabinet led by Shinde, minutes after Fadnavis announced he will not be in the government.

    Fadnavis had sprang a surprise when he announced that Shinde will be the next chief minister.

    His announcement defied expectations that he would return to the post with the support of the Shinde faction.

    “Development of the state is my priority. I will take all sections of society along with me,” Shinde told after the ceremony.

    The meteoric rise of Shinde rivals Bollywood’s film scripts. An auto-driver with humble beginnings, he went on to become the right hand man of party chief Uddhav Thackeray, and his nemesis.

    WATCH |

    Shinde is a four-time MLA and two-time minister. Skilled in organising people and events, Shinde’s spark was discovered and initially used by Sena’s Thane district president Nanad Dighe. That’s how auto-driver Shinde started driving Dighe’s car.

    He then became the eyes and ears of Dighe, who used to be known as the “king of Thane”. Closeness with Dighe helped him get elected as a corporator in the Thane Municipal Corporation. Subsequently, Shinde became an MLA and the rest is history. Over the time, he reportedly amassed huge wealth and clout in the party. In the Maha Vikas Aghadi government led by Uddhav Thackeray, Shinde was handling plum portfolios of urban development and state road transport.

    In 2019, when Sena was bargaining with the BJP over sharing of power, Shinde was dreaming of deputy chief minister post. That dream was clipped when Uddhav Thackeray decided to form government with the help of NCP and Congress.

  • Devendra Fadnavis will join Maharashtra government in state’s interest: Amit Shah

    By Online Desk

    On the request of BJP president JP Nadda, party leader in Maharashtra Devendra Fadnavis has decided to join the government in the interest of the state, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said on Thursday evening.

    During a press meet earlier in the day, Fadnavis had said that BJP would support a new minority government led by Shiv Sena rebel group leader Eknath Shinde, who will be sworn in as the Chief Minister of Maharashtra.

    Then it was considered to be a foregone conclusion that Fadnavis will become the CM for the third time, in alliance with the Shinde-led Sena rebels.

    Fadnavis had sprang a surprise when he announced that Shinde will be the next chief minister.

    His announcement defied expectations that he would return to the post with the support of the Shinde faction.

    The BJP will extend support to Shinde’s group, said Fadnavis, a former chief minister and currently Leader of Opposition in the Assembly, while adding that he would be out of government but will ensure its smooth functioning.

    However, soon Nadda tweeted that Fadnavis will be part of the government “Devendra Fadnavis has shown big heart and decided to join the new Maharashtra cabinet,” Nadda said and added that it has been proved that BJP never had a desire for chief minister’s post and Shiv Sena leader Uddhav Thackeray left their alliance “for greed” of this post.

    This is a breaking news. The story will be updated soon

  • ‘Journey towards one’s decline begins when good fortune is misunderstood as accomplishment’: Raj Thackeray’s dig at Uddhav

    Uddhav Thackeray quit the top post following a rebellion by senior Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde and the majority of the party MLAs.

  • Shiv Sena’s new suave face Aaditya Thackeray leads aggressive counter-charge against party rebels

    By PTI

    MUMBAI: As the Shiv Sena faces perhaps its worst crisis since its inception with a rebellion by majority of legislators, Maharashtra minister and the party’s youth wing leader Aaditya Thackeray is spearheading a counter-attack.

    The tone and tenor of the Thackeray family scion, usually known as the Sena’s new suave face, has changed in the last few days.

    When former Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray appealed to rebel legislators who are camping in Guwahati to return, their leader Eknath Shinde said while the Sena chief was seeking reconciliation, his son Aaditya had labelled them as “dirt from a nullah.”

    With as many as 39 Sena MLAs deserting the Thackerays, 32-year-old Aaditya has addressed party workers at multiple places, from Karjat in neighbouring Raigad district to Sena strongholds of Byculla, Kalina and Dadar in Mumbai.

    The Yuva Sena led by Aaditya has also been at the forefront of protests against the rebel MLAs.

    On the night when the Thackerays left `Varsha,’ the official residence of the chief minister, and moved back to their personal residence `Matoshree’, they received a grand farewell all through the route.

    To pacify swelling crowds, Aaditya again emerged out of Matoshree and waved at party supporters while showing his fist.

    In his speeches, he has been calling the rebel MLAs “traitors”.

    “Dirt has gone from the party. Now we can do something good,” he said on Monday.

    “When allegations (of the rebels) target his father, he is bound to spearhead the attack against the rebels and he is doing it,” Shiv Sena MLC Manisha Kayande told PTI.

    Sena MLA Ravindra Waikar, known to be close to the Thackerays and who is still by their side, said there was anger against the rebels and Aaditya has been meeting party workers and rallying support.

    Sanjay Patil, a researcher with the Department of Civics and Politics in Mumbai, said Aaditya has been, in a way, leading the party for the last few months, as Uddhav Thackeray is plagued by health issues.

    The chief minister underwent a spine surgery last November and operated from home for several weeks.

    Aaditya also plays a key role in decision-making within the party, Patil said.

    In 2019, Aaditya became only the second person from the Thackeray family to contest polls.

    His aunt Shalini had contested an election on the ticket of Maharashtra Navnirman Sena, led by his estranged uncle Raj Thackeray.

    After the Sena formed an unlikely alliance with Congress and NCP in 2019 after ditching the BJP, Aaditya Thackeray, a first-time MLA, was made minister in his father’s cabinet, and given charge of the Tourism, Environment and Protocol departments.

    “The recent aggression must be stemming from the do-or-die situation the party is facing now and also (it comes) at a time when attempts are being made to erase the identity of the party by people who have been close to his family,” Patil said.

    Since he became a minister, Aaditya has also faced criticism for moving around in Mumbai’s elite circles rather than connecting with the Sena’s mass base.

    Last month BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis called him a “Mercedes baby” who can not appreciate the struggle of the Karsevaks who took part in the agitation for Ram temple in Ayodhya.

    Thackeray had reportedly ridiculed Fadnavis over the latter’s claim that he was present when the Babri Masjid was demolished in 1992.

    “These Mercedes babies, born with golden spoon in the mouth, never had to do any struggle, nor did they see any struggle,” Fadnavis had hit back.

  • Maharashtra crisis: Rebel leader Eknath Shinde leaves for Mumbai to meet Governor

    By PTI

    PANAJI: Rebel Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde left Goa for Mumbai on Thursday afternoon, where he is scheduled to meet Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari.

    Shinde and other rebel MLAs, who arrived in Goa on Wednesday night from Guwahati, stayed at a resort at Dona Paula near here.

    While other MLAs continued to be at the resort, Shinde stepped out amid a tight police security around 12.20 pm.

    ALSO READ: Floor test cancelled as Uddhav Thackeray resigns; Maharashtra Assembly special session postponed

    “I am going to Mumbai to meet the Maharashtra Governor. All other MLAs are staying in Goa at present,” Shinde told reporters outside the resort.

    Party sources said that Shinde is also likely to meet senior BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis, who is expected to make a comeback as chief minister.

    ALSO READ: Supreme setback floors Thackeray government

    On Wednesday night, Uddhav Thackeray resigned as Maharashtra chief minister, which paved the way for the return of the BJP to power. The rebel Shiv Sena MLAs led by Shinde are likely to support the BJP to form a government.

    ALSO WATCH: