The Maharashtra Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) shared a video from four years ago of its senior leader Devendra Fadnavis announcing that he will return to helm the state, prompting speculation in state political circles.
I will return to build a new Maharashtra, Fadnavis said in the video. The video was posted on the social media platform X by the state BJP. The video, however, has now been deleted by the BJP.
Prior to the 2019 Maharashtra Assembly elections, Devendra Fadnavis, who was the Chief Minister at the time, had famously stated, Mi punha yein (I will return), a statement that gave rise to numerous social media memes.
Fadnavis currently holds the position of one of the two Deputy Chief Ministers in Maharashtra, with the other being Ajit Pawar from the NCP. CM Eknath Shinde told a TV channel that he is yet to see the video posted by state BJP unit. BJP leader Pravin Darekar said Fadnavis has already made it clear that the state government is working fine under Shinde’s leadership.
Former CM and Congress leader Prithviraj Chavan wondered if there is a move afoot to replace Shinde as CM. Maybe Shinde is being made the scapegoat. Such a move may be because the government led by him has failed to tackle important issues, Chavan added.