Deputy Chief Minister and Shiv Sena chief Eknath Shinde’s party has emerged as Number Two in the Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis-led Maharashtra government by bagging heavyweight and key portfolios in the much-awaited portfolio distribution among the ruling Mahayuti alliance comprising the BJP, NCP and Shiv Sena.
Even as Shinde had to accept the Deputy CM post, he seems to have bargained hard with the BJP and has managed to get the lion’s share in the portfolio distribution by bagging important and heavyweight departments like Urban Development, Housing, Industries, Public Health, Water and School Education, among others.
The party has also managed to retain most of the portfolios which it held earlier in the Shinde-led state government and added important portfolios like Housing.
He, however, could not get Home, the portfolio he was keen on and bargained hard with the BJP for the past two-three weeks. Sources in the Sena said in place of Home, Shinde managed to get other important portfolios like Housing and Urban Development, among others.
With the Urban Development ministry with him, Shinde will have control on all the urban local bodies and key infrastructure and housing agencies in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region and other cities of the state like MMRDA, CIDCO and MSRDC.
Apart from Shinde, 11 other Sena MLAs had taken oath as ministers last week in Nagpur, a day before the winter session began. While Shinde has kept the important portfolios of Urban Development, Housing and Public Works (Public Enterprises), Uday Samant has been given Industries and Marathi language ministries.
Other important portfolios like Public Health & Family Welfare and School Education have been assigned to Sena ministers Prakash Abitkar and Dada Bhuse, respectively. Transport ministry has been assigned to Bharat Gogawale, Water Supply and Sanitation to Gulabrao Patil, Soil & Water Conservation to Sanjay Rathod, Tourism, Mining, Ex-Servicemen Welfare to Shambhuraj Desai and Social Justice to Sanjay Shirsat.
Apart from Cabinet ministries, the party has also bagged Ministers of State portfolios. While Ashish Jaiswal has been assigned Finance & Planning, Agriculture, Relief & Rehabilitation, Law and Judiciary, Labour, Yogesh Kadam has been made MoS for Home (Urban), Revenue, Rural Development & Panchayati Raj, Food Civil Supplies & Consumer Protection, Food & Drug Administration.
While nominating nine Cabinet and two MoS in the new government, the Sena retained five ministers and dropped three who were part of the previous Mahayuti government. The party has given opportunity to six new faces, which include first-timers.
On the induction of MLAs into the Cabinet, a Sena functionary said that Shinde has played a strategic balancing act both on regional front as well as on caste lines, while also keeping in mind the upcoming civic polls and ensuring that there is representation from all the five regions of the state.
Shinde is also banking on the two-and-a-half-years rotation policy for ministers to pacify MLAs who missed the bus this time.
In region-wise break up, Shinde has given maximum representation to Konkan region by choosing three ministers from there, followed by two ministers each from North Maharashtra, Western Maharashtra, Vidarbha and Mumbai Metropolitan region and one from Marathwada.
The party has, however, not nominated any face from Mumbai.
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