Athawale Offers Guidance to ‘Sulking’ Shinde Prior to Crucial BJP Meeting
Click to start listening
New Delhi, Dec 3 (NationPress) Amid the prolonged uncertainty concerning the Mahayuti’s decision on the Chief Minister for Maharashtra, Union Minister and NDA leader Ramdas Athawale shared some guidance with the ‘sulking’ Shiv Sena (SS) leader Eknath Shinde.
He suggested a prominent role for the SS leader within the Mahayuti to foster a consensus on government formation in Maharashtra.
The chief of the Republican Party of India (Athawale) remarked that Eknath Shinde has expressed dissatisfaction over losing his claim to the Chief Minister’s position and advised the caretaker CM to accept the reality rather than delaying the process.
In remarks to IANS, the Union Minister indicated that Devendra Fadnavis was poised to become the next Maharashtra CM and urged Shinde to relinquish his insistence on the CM’s position.
“Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah have the ultimate authority to make the final decision, but the BJP legislature party meeting on December 4 is set to elect its leader, with Devendra Fadnavis likely to receive overwhelming support,” he stated.
“Fadnavis has previously held the position of Maharashtra CM and has also acted as Deputy CM, maintaining strong and friendly relationships with other legislators. All these elements significantly favor him,” Athawale elaborated.
Regarding Eknath Shinde’s reluctance to join the Mahayuti government, he noted that the SS leader feels he has performed well over the past 2.5 years and thus merits another opportunity to continue his work.
“The BJP high command’s refusal to grant him the CM’s position is the primary reason for Shinde’s hesitance,” he clarified.
To resolve the deadlock, he proposed that Shinde could be offered two options – either a Cabinet position at the Centre or the Mahayuti’s chairman role.
“Since he prefers not to leave Maharashtra, the latter option would be more suitable for him,” he added.
It’s noteworthy that it has been ten days since the Mahayuti, consisting of the BJP, Shiv Sena, and NCP-SP, achieved a significant mandate, yet the formation of a government has been stalled due to disputes over the CM’s position.
Eknath Shinde has frequently expressed his party’s willingness to comply with the BJP’s requirements and stated that any decision made by PM Modi and HM Shah would be acceptable to him, but discussions regarding government formation have yet to commence.
Moreover, the meetings among the Mahayuti to deliberate on the allocation of portfolios and Cabinet positions have been repeatedly postponed for various reasons.
