Three-day Maharashtra Assembly session to begin today

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Three-day Maharashtra Assembly session to begin today

Saturday, 07 December 2024 | T N RAGHUNATHA | Mumbai

Ahead of its first Cabinet expansion new BJP-led MahaYuti government that is likely to take place before December 16, a three-day session of the Maharashtra Legislature will begin here from Saturday.

During the first two days of the session—on Saturday and Sunday, the newly elected MLAs will take oath.

On Monday, the new Speaker of the Maharashtra Assembly will be elected. On the same day, Governor C P Radhakrishnan will address a joint sitting of the Maharashtra Legislature. The new government will also table ordinances in both the Houses of the State Legislature during the day.

Given that the oath-taking ceremony held on Thursday was restricted to the  swearing-in of chief minister Devendra Fadnavis of the BJP and deputy chief ministers Eknath Shinde of the Shiv Sena (ES) and Ajit Pawar of the NCP (AP)  the new MahaYuti government is planning its first Cabinet expansion sometime next week.

Interacting with a leading television channel, Maharashtra’s new chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said: “The Cabinet expansion will definitely take place before December 16. The number of ministries to be given to each of the three constituents in the MahaYuti – BJP, Shiv Sena (ES) and NCP (Ajit Pawar -- has been finalised”.

“We are to finalise the matters relating to the portfolio allocations. Three of  us ( Shinde, Ajit Pawar and I) will sit across the    

Since the Maharashtra Assembly comprises 288 members, there will be a maximum of 43 ministers in the State Cabinet -- a number that accounts for 15 percent of total members in the lower House of the State Legislature.

In the normal course, the BJP will get 21 ministerial berths in the 43-member Cabinet, while the  Shinde Shiv Sena is entitled for 12 ministries and the Ajit Pawar-led NCP will have to be satisfied with 10 berths.

It remains to be seen if chief minister Fadnavis will accept a demand made by  the NCP (AP) – which has won 41 seats --that it be given an equal number of ministries as that of the Shiv Sena (ES) with 57 MLAs on the basis of its “winning strike rate” in the State Assembly polls.

In other words, the NCP (AP) is rooting for 11 ministries instead of ten berths. The Ajit Pawar-led party wants the BJP to carve one ministry from the Shinde Sena’s quota of 12 ministries and give it.     

However, when asked about it, Fadnavis declined to disclose as to how many ministries each of the three MahaYuti constituents will get.

Notwithstanding the vociferous demand by Shinde that he be given the crucial State Home portfolio, Fadnavis has indicated that he wants to keep this portfolio with himself.

“We will discuss this issue when we sit across to decide on portfolio allocations. But, a state home minister will have to coordinate regularly with the Centre. Given that the BJP heads the government at the Centre, it is ideal that a BJP man holds the State Home portfolio,” Fadnavis said, when asked about his insistence on holding the State Home portfolio.

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