43 ministries in the Maharashtra cabinet will be split between the Congress, the NCP and the Shiv Sena
Highlights
- Sharad Pawar's NCP likely to get 16 of 43 positions
- Jayant Patil, Sharad Pawar's close aide, likely to be named Home Minister
- The NCP will also get the Deputy Chief Minister's post
The NCP may get several key ministries in Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray's cabinet, with sources suggesting the party will get the maximum number of positions - 16 - of 43 positions available. This despite the party having lesser number of MLAs compared to the Shiv Sena. The Sena will end up with 15 posts, and the Congress 12. The additional ministry to the NCP is said to be because the Congress was given the post of Speaker. The Congress' MLA - Nana Patole - was elected to the Speaker's post this morning.
The NCP is likely to bag the coveted Home Ministry portfolio. According to sources the NCP's Jayant Patil, a close aide of Sharad Pawar, is a key contender for Home Minister. Mr Patil briefly served in this position during the Congress-NCP government. He was one of two NCP leaders - the other was Chhagan Bhujbal - to be sworn-in alongside Uddhav Thackeray at Mumbai's Shivaji Park on Thursday evening.
The NCP will also get the Deputy Chief Minister's post, expected to be given to Sharad Pawar's nephew Ajit Pawar, whose overnight switch to the BJP last week prompted a week of chaos and uncertainty in Maharashtra politics. On Thursday, asked if he would be Deputy Chief Minister again, he said: "There is no decision yet. The party will decide".
The Congress is expected to get the post of Revenue Minister.
That could go to Maharashtra Congress chief Balasaheb Thorat and Ashok Chavan, a former Chief Minister and a Maratha leader from the Marathwada region, amongst the two Congress leaders sworn-in on Thursday. Mr Thorat is an eight-time MLA from Sangamner and earlier this week was also elected as the party's legislature wing leader
The Shiv Sena, which contested October's election with long-term ally the BJP but fell out, spectacularly, over power-sharing talks, is likely to get Urban Development Ministry. Sena leaders Eknath Shinde and Subhash Desai were the two party faces sworn-in on Thursday.
Both Mr Shinde and Mr Desai served in the cabinet headed by former Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis; Mr Shinde was Minister of Public Health and Family Welfare and Mr Desai was Minister of Industries and Mining.
Earlier this morning Congress MLA Nana Patole was elected unopposed as the new Maharashtra Speaker. Mr Fadnavis was then appointed as Leader of the Opposition.
In his short speech, the BJP leader said that although his party had nominated MLA Kisan Kathore to the Speaker's race, it had bowed to requests from other parties to honour a long-standing tradition - that the Speaker is elected unopposed and withdrew Mr Kathore's nomination with minutes before the deadline.