Mumbai, December 2: The deadlock over the selection of Maharashtra’s next Chief Minister continued as caretaker CM Eknath Shinde canceled his meetings due to illness, while NCP leader Ajit Pawar traveled to Delhi for discussions with senior BJP leaders on government formation.
Shinde, who was set to attend a Mahayuti meeting to finalize portfolio allocations, is reportedly suffering from a throat infection and fever. He has been resting in his native village in Satara over the weekend and has not returned to his official residence, 'Varsha'. The meeting has now been postponed and is expected to take place on Tuesday.
Sources within Shiv Sena have indicated that no formal Mahayuti meeting was planned for Monday. Instead, they are awaiting a meeting scheduled by the BJP, the largest party in the alliance. The Mahayuti coalition—comprising the BJP, Shiv Sena, and Ajit Pawar's NCP—secured a decisive win in the Maharashtra Assembly elections on November 20, with 230 out of 288 seats. The BJP alone won 132 seats, while Shiv Sena and NCP secured 57 and 41 seats, respectively. Speculation continues that Devendra Fadnavis is the frontrunner for the Chief Minister’s position, given the BJP’s dominant position in the Assembly.
Meanwhile, Ajit Pawar has traveled to Delhi to meet with BJP leadership to discuss the formation of the new government and the distribution of portfolios.
In a related development, Eknath Shinde's son, Shiv Sena MP Shrikant Shinde, dismissed reports suggesting he was being considered for the Deputy Chief Minister's post. He called these rumors "baseless" and clarified that he was not seeking any ministerial role in the state. In a social media statement, Shrikant Shinde addressed the speculation, saying: "The delay in the swearing-in ceremony has led to various rumors. Caretaker CM Eknath Shinde took a two-day break to rest due to illness, fueling these claims. The reports about me becoming Deputy Chief Minister are completely baseless." He also reaffirmed his commitment to focusing on his Lok Sabha constituency and the Shiv Sena, stating that he had previously declined an opportunity to join the central government after the NDA’s Lok Sabha victory, choosing instead to focus on party organization.
"I have no desire for a position in power," Shrikant Shinde emphasized, reiterating that he is not in the race for any ministerial position in the state.
