Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis announced on Sunday that 39 leaders have been sworn in as cabinet ministers, including six as state ministers, with portfolio allocation expected to be finalized within two days. The cabinet expansion ceremony took place at Raj Bhavan in Nagpur, administered by Governor CP Radhakrishnan, with Deputy Chief Ministers Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar also in attendance.
“Thirty-nine leaders have taken the oath today, six of whom are state ministers. In two days, portfolio allocation will be clarified. This session will include discussions on the Governor’s speech, and 20 bills will be introduced,” Fadnavis stated.
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Addressing concerns from the opposition regarding Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs), the Chief Minister emphasized that the matter had been addressed previously and assured it would be clarified again if necessary.
“The opposition submitted a letter, and a paragraph on EVMs was added to the letter from the last session. This issue has been addressed before and will be answered again whenever raised. I want to emphasise that EVM stands for ‘Every Vote for Maharashtra,'” he said.
Fadnavis also introduced a performance-based accountability measure for ministers. “We will carry out a performance audit of all ministers. If a minister is found lacking in their duties, their position will be reconsidered,” he added.
The new cabinet comprises leaders from the BJP, Shiv Sena, and NCP, forming the Mahayuti alliance. Key BJP leaders sworn in include Chandrashekhar Bawankule, Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil, Chandrakant Patil, Girish Mahajan, Ganesh Naik, Mangalprabhat Lodha, and Pankaja Munde, among others. Shiv Sena leaders in the cabinet include Gulab Patil, Uday Samant, Sanjay Shirsath, and Pratap Sarnaik. NCP representatives inducted include Hasan Mushrif, Dhananjay Munde, and Aditi Tatkare.
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The six state ministers sworn in are BJP’s Madhuri Misal, Pankaj Bhoar, and Meghna Bordikar; Shiv Sena’s Ashish Jaiswal and Yogesh Kadam; and NCP’s Indranil Naik.
Shiv Sena leader Uday Samant pledged his commitment to the Mahayuti government’s initiatives. “We will work for the people of Maharashtra under Eknath Shinde’s leadership. We will further the Mahayuti government’s initiatives under Devendra Fadnavis. We function as a family and will ensure smooth governance,” he said.
Sanjay Shirsath, also of Shiv Sena, reflected on his journey and the performance-based tenure system introduced by Deputy CM Shinde. “It feels incredible. Today, we are reaping the fruits of 40 years of hard work. Eknath Shinde has stated that ministerial tenures will be for 2.5 years, extendable based on performance. This is an excellent formula,” he remarked.
Meanwhile, BJP leader Nitesh Rane expressed gratitude for his new role and outlined his commitment to the state’s development. “I thank everyone for entrusting me, a young Hindutva activist, with the responsibility of a ministerial post. We will strive to develop Maharashtra,” Rane said.
This cabinet expansion comes two weeks after Fadnavis and his deputies were sworn in on December 5. The Mahayuti alliance, which secured a landslide victory in the 2024 Maharashtra Assembly elections with 235 seats, faced criticism for delaying the cabinet announcement despite its substantial majority. The BJP emerged as the single largest party with 132 seats, followed by Shiv Sena with 57 and NCP with 41 seats.
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