Devendra Fadnavis to take oath as Maha CM at 5.30 pm, Shinde, Ajit Pawar as Deputy CMs

Fadnavis will expand his cabinet next week as the BJP, Shiv Sena and NCP have yet to reach a consensus on sharing the number of cabinet berths among themselves and also the allocation of ministries

Mumbai: Chief Minister and two Deputy Chief Ministers of Maharashtra will be sworn in at 5.30 p.m. at the grand swearing-in function at Azad Maidan in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Devendra Fadnavis, who was unanimously elected as the BJP legislature party leader, will take the oath of office and secrecy as the Maharashtra Chief Minister for the third time while Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar will be the Deputy Chief Ministers.

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Governor C.P. Radhakrishnan will administer the oath. Fadnavis will expand his cabinet next week as the BJP, Shiv Sena and NCP have yet to reach a consensus on sharing the number of cabinet berths among themselves and also the allocation of ministries.

The expansion is likely to take place on December 11 or 12 after the three-day session of the state Assembly slated for December 7 to 9 in Mumbai. Shinde, who was initially reluctant to join the cabinet, finally agreed after Fadnavis met him on Tuesday and Wednesday urging him to be part of the Mahayuti government, especially after the landslide victory.

Shinde also yielded after a host of Shiv Sena leaders and former ministers requested him to be part of the system instead of remaining out focusing on strengthening the party organisation.

In the case of Ajit Pawar, he had already extended his party’s support to Fadnavis as the chief minister. In addition, on Wednesday, after Fadnavis staked a claim with the Governor for the government formation, Ajit Pawar announced he would take oath on Thursday notwithstanding Shinde’s dilly-dallying.

Ajit Pawar will create a record of becoming the Dy CM for the sixth time.

Azad Maidan has been decked up for the swearing-in function which will be attended by PM Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah and a couple of Union Ministers, BJP President J.P. Nadda, 19 chief ministers of states ruled by BJP and allies apart from Mahayuti leaders and workers from across Maharashtra.

Over 10,000 Ladki Bahins and 2,000 farmers will also attend the function. Over 40,000 people are expected to attend today’s swearing-in ceremony.

The members of cooperative societies have helped BJP and Mahayuti to score a big win and so about 5,000 chairpersons and secretaries of such societies will also attend the ceremony.

A special arrangement is being made for about 2,000 VVIPs and VIPs. The swearing-in ceremony will be telecast live and it can be seen on LED screens at bus stops, theatres and key locations from across Maharashtra.

The invitations have been sent to veteran politicians, including Sharad Pawar, Uddhav Thackeray and leading industrialists such as Mukesh Ambani. Nearly 100 saints, influencers, professionals, including doctors and chartered accountants, and Bollywood stars and Marathi film actors are also being invited to the swearing-in function.

Nearly 10,000 BJP workers will wear T-shirts with a written message of ‘Ek Hai To Safe Hai’. Before the commencement of the swearing-in, Marathi and Hindi singers will perform at the venue.

The security has been beefed in and around Azad Maidan situated near the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus in South Mumbai. More than 5,000 police personnel have been deployed in addition to teams of state reserve police force, anti-riots force and rapid action force.

Five additional police commissioners, 15 deputy commissioners and 29 assistant commissioners have been assigned to supervise security arrangements and for an incident-free swearing-in function. The police will also use drones to keep a close vigil.