Maharashtra cabinet expansion
New Delhi: The BJP-led Mahayuti government in Maharashtra, which has been in office for 10 days, experienced its inaugural expansion on Sunday in Nagpur, with the induction of 39 ministers, thereby increasing its total number to 42. In light of reports indicating dissatisfaction among certain MLAs who were not included in the newly expanded cabinet, Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar stated that some of the ministers who took their oaths would serve for a duration of two and a half years, assuring that there would be an “opportunity for others” to join during the remaining tenure.
During this cabinet expansion, the BJP secured 19 ministerial positions, while the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena received 11, and Ajit Pawar’s Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) obtained 9. Out of the 39 legislators sworn in, 33 were appointed as cabinet ministers, and 6 were designated as ministers of state. The maximum allowable size for the council of ministers in Maharashtra is 43 members, including the chief minister.
Ajit Pawar, addressing a gathering of party workers in Nagpur just hours before the cabinet expansion, remarked, “We will provide opportunities to others as well for two and a half years.”
The recent cabinet expansion has reportedly caused discontent among some MLAs who were overlooked for ministerial roles. Union Minister Ramdas Athawale expressed his disappointment on Sunday after his Republican Party of India (A) was not allocated a ministerial position in the Mahayuti cabinet expansion, despite prior assurances.
“Republican Party of India (A) performed well in the Vidhan Sabha elections. We held meetings with Devendra Fadnavis, and he promised to allocate at least one ministry to us. However, in this expansion, there is no representation from RPI(A). We demand at least one ministry in the Cabinet,” Athawale conveyed to news agency ANI.
