New Delhi: With the BJP expected to bring in new faces to Mahayuti cabinet in Maharashtra, the swearing-in ceremony of the ministers of the grand coalition—comprising BJP, Shiv Sena (Shinde’s faction) and Ajit Pawar’s NCP—is scheduled for 4 pm today (December 15) in Nagpur. According to reports, several Shiv Sena and NCP MLAs are set to be inducted into the council of ministers. The BJP, which holds a significant share of cabinet will keep some of its 20 allotted seats vacant for now, leaving room for future adjustments, reported India Today, quoting sources.
New faces from Shinde’s camp expected
About 13 MLAs from the Shiv Sena are expected to take oath, reports claimed. Some of the ministers, who may be retained are Uday Samant, Shambhuraje Desai, Gulabrao Patil, Dada Bhuse, and Sanjay Rathod. Many fresh faces from the Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena are likely to join the cabinet, reports claimed. Sanjay Shirsat, Bharat Gogawale, Prakash Abitkar, Yogesh Kadam, Ashish Jaiswal, and Pratap Sarnaik are likely to be sworn-in. Some notable Shiv Sena leaders, including Deepak Kesarkar, Tanaji Sawant, and Abdul Sattar, will not return to the cabinet this time, reported the India Today.
What about the NCP?
The NCP is also set to have its members inducted. Aditi Tatkare, Babasaheb Patil, Dattatray Bharane, Hasan Mushrif, and Narhari Zirwal are among those expected to take oath as ministers, India Today claimed. Several prominent BJP MLAs are likely to join the cabinet. The BJP is likely to strengthen its foothold in the alliance.
Will BJP retain home ministry or pass it to Shinde camp?
BJP MLA who were reportedly called for inclusion are Nitesh Rane, Shivendra Raje, Girish Mahajan, Meghna Bordikar, Pankaja Munde, Jaykumar Rawal, and Mangal Prabhat Lodha. The BJP is likely to hand over the housing ministry to the Shiv Sena in the Maharashtra cabinet, while retaining the home ministry, PTI reported, citing sources. The sources also claimed that both Shiv Sena and NCP were expected to keep the portfolios they had possessed in the previous Mahayuti government. But the Shiv Sena may gain one additional ministry
