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By:

Abhijit Mulye

21 August 2024 at 4:59:11 pm

Why BJP cannot afford to pull Fadnavis out of Maharashtra

Mumbai: A recent political skirmish between Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis’ wife, Amruta and Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut has inadvertently breathed new life into one of Maharashtra’s longest-running political debates: Is the Chief Minister quietly preparing to shift his base to New Delhi? Following a provocation by Raut regarding a potential move to the national capital, Amruta delivered a sharp retort, asserting that unlike the Sena leader, both she and her husband remain strictly...

Why BJP cannot afford to pull Fadnavis out of Maharashtra

Mumbai: A recent political skirmish between Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis’ wife, Amruta and Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut has inadvertently breathed new life into one of Maharashtra’s longest-running political debates: Is the Chief Minister quietly preparing to shift his base to New Delhi? Following a provocation by Raut regarding a potential move to the national capital, Amruta delivered a sharp retort, asserting that unlike the Sena leader, both she and her husband remain strictly oriented toward grassroots public service. While this high-profile exchange captured the daily headlines, a deeper investigative analysis of the state’s political chessboard reveals a starker structural reality – the BJP simply cannot afford to move Fadnavis anytime soon. The speculation surrounding a “Delhi destiny” for Fadnavis is not new. Political observers have frequently positioned him in the national leadership matrix, with widespread speculation even hinting at him as a potential successor to the Prime Minister. Yet, Fadnavis has consistently played the consummate organization man. He has repeatedly stated his strong preference to remain anchored in Maharashtra, while diplomatically adding that, as a disciplined cadre of the BJP, he is bound to serve the people in whatever capacity the party high command deems appropriate. Leadership Vacuum However, behind closed doors, the real reasons anchoring Fadnavis to Maharashtra lie in the severe leadership vacuum and complex challenges currently facing the state BJP unit. A forensic look at the party’s regional roster exposes a glaring lack of alternatives. Over the past few years, the state party dynamic has been fundamentally restructured; senior stalwarts like Vinod Tawde have already been absorbed into the central leadership in New Delhi, while several other regional heavyweights have been strategically cut down to size. Consequently, the Maharashtra BJP is currently devoid of another experienced, universally acceptable hand with the political bandwidth to govern a crucial and financially vital state. Fadnavis possesses a rare ideological and administrative hybrid profile that perfectly aligns with Maharashtra’s unique sociopolitical climate. He remains deeply rooted in the core Hindutva ideology of his parent organization, yet he seamlessly projects the modern, technocratic, and pro-corporate image that is absolutely essential to helm a highly progressive and industrialized state. This dual persona is the exact political capital required to hold a fragile government together. Fadnavis has proven to be the only leader capable of walking the tightrope of regional coalition politics, successfully acting as the connective tissue between two major, often feuding allies who rarely see eye-to-eye on administrative or ideological issues. Caste Politics Beyond coalition mechanics, Maharashtra is currently navigating a highly volatile undercurrent of simmering caste politics. Fadnavis’ political acumen has been critical in absorbing these sociopolitical stretches and strains, ensuring that these regional frictions do not derail the state’s economic momentum. Under his watch, the administration has fiercely guarded Maharashtra’s position as the numero uno destination for development and investment in the country. Finally, the state is gearing up for a season of massive logistical, cultural, and administrative challenges, most notably the upcoming Kumbh Mela in Nashik. Executing mega-events of this scale requires seasoned, hands-on leadership and deep institutional memory.

Unrest within Mahayuti

Updated: Jan 21, 2025

Mahayuti

Mumbai: The state administration on Sunday stalled the appointments of guardian ministers in Raigad and Nashik districts. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had cleared the appointments before he left for Davos in Switzerland to attend the World Economic Forum on Saturday. They are believed to have been stalled on behest of Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, who heads the state in absence of the Chief Minister.


NCP’s Aditi Tatkare and BJP’s Girish Mahajan were entrusted with responsibilities of guardian minister for the Raigad and Nashik districts respectively, where Shiv Sena’s Bharat Gogawale and Dada Bhuse had staked claims. Gogawale is a first-time minister while, Bhuse had been the guardian minister of the district during previous government under Eknath Shinde.


Shiv Sena, NCP and BJP all the three constituents of Mahayuti have strong roots in both the districts. However, the Shiv Sena and the NCP had been particularly on loggerheads there. The Shiv Sena, which had been demanding the guardian minister’s post in Nashik district has managed to win only two assembly seats in the district where the NCP has Six and the BJP has Five MLAs. On the contrary, in Raigad the NCP has won only one seat while the Shiv Sena and the BJP both have Three MLAs each in the district.


Sunil Tatkare, MP from Raigad Lok Sabha constituency and the stat unit president of the NCP and father of Aditi Tatkare, had been the guardian minister of Raigad between 2004 and 2014. Gogawale had always been his political opponent before Tatkare joined the Mahayuti government under Ajit Pawar’s leadership in 2023. Gogawale claimed that all the Six Shiv Sena-BJP MLAs in the district had opined in his favour to be the guardian minister of the district and after the decision to appoint Aditi Tatkare was announced, his supporters resorted to violent protests. They burnt tyres in bid to stall traffic on highway in the district. Reacting to the developments, Tatkare said that the issue should be pondered over after CM Fadnavis returns from Davos on Saturday and settled amicably.


In Nashik Girish Mahajan had been the guardian minister of the district between 2014 and 2019 when Fadnavis was the Chief Minister.


The post of guardian minister doesn’t have any constitutional mandate and is considered to be a political appointment. Guardian ministers head the district planning and development councils (DPDC) that control the funds for development works being carried out in the particular district. This control wields much of political power to the minister in that district whereby spreading the party in the district becomes much easier. This is the reason why the grass root politicians seem to be very sensitive to such appointments.


While Gogawale and Bhuse are unhappy about not being appointed as guardian ministers, some others like NCP’s Hasan Mushrif and BJP’s Pankaja Munde are unhappy about not being appointed as guardian district in their home districts of Kolhapur and Beed respectively. DCM Shinde is learnt to have gone to his ancestral village Dare in Satara district after the decision and BJP’s firefighters Chandrashekhar Bawankule and Girish Mahajan are expected to meet him there to try finding a way out of the issue.

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