Fadnavis Aide Set to Become Maharashtra Legislative Council Chairman

 Mumbai: BJP will hold all the aces in the Maharashtra Legislature as the saffron party on Wednesday nominated Ram Shinde, a close aide of chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, for the post of chairperson of the Vidhan Parishad (State Legislative Council). The Vidhan Sabha Speaker post is also with BJP’s Rahul Narwekar.

Shinde filed nomination for election to the post of chairperson of the Maharashtra Vidhan Parishad. During the filing of his nomination, he was accompanied by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Deputy CM and NCP leader Ajit Pawar, BJP state head Chandrashekhar Bawankule and party leader Chandrakant Patil.

The election will be held on Thursday, but Shinde’s anointment as the Vidhan Parishad chairperson is a foregone conclusion due to the numerical strength of the ruling Mahayuti Government in the House. Currently, out of the 78 total seats in the Parishad, 26 seats are vacant. BJP has 19 members, while NCP (Ajit Pawar) has 7 and Shinde Sena has 6, while also being supported by 3 independents, bringing Mahayuti's total strength to be 35. The total strength of the opposition Maha Vikas Agadhi (MVA) is 17, with Shiv Sena (UBT) having 7 members, Congress 7 and NCP (SP) having 3.

Shinde’s nomination has dashed the hopes of Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena's Neelam Gorhe, who was holding the charge after the term of NCP’s Ramraje Nimbalkar had lapsed in July 2022.

“I sincerely thank Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Home Minister of the country, Amit Shah, the National President of the Bharatiya Janata Party, J P Nadda Ji, the Chief Minister, Devendra Fadnavis, Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, BJP State President Chandrashekhar Bawankule as well as all the leaders of NDA and Mahayuti,” Shinde said in his post on X.

Shinde was previously elected from Karjat Jamkhed constituency in 2014 to the Vidhan Sabha. He served as a minister in the previous Devendra Fadnavis government (from 2014-19). In 2019, he was defeated by NCP (SP) leader and Sharad Pawar’s grandnephew Rohit Pawar. Shinde became a member of the Vidhan Parishad on July 8, 2022. However, Pawar again defeated him in the recently held Vidhan Sabha polls.