Maharashtra's Chief Minister oath-taking ceremony will take place on December 5 at Azad Maidan in Mumbai. Leading members of the MahaYuti alliance, including Chandrashekhar Bawankule, Girish Mahajan, Sanjay Shirsat, and Dhananjay Munde, visited the venue to inspect the arrangements ahead of the event. The visit focused on finalizing logistics and ensuring the smooth conduct of the ceremony. The event is expected to be a significant political gathering, marking a new chapter in Maharashtra's governance.
Mahajan, also considered among senior BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis' close aides, met Shinde at his residence on Monday evening. Mahajan emphasised that he only enquired about Shinde's health and did not discuss anything related to politics. "We are all together in Mahayuti. Shinde will be there for the swearing-in ceremony," Mahajan told reporters. He added that he sought an appointment with Shinde 5-6 days ago but could not meet the latter since he was unwell and in his native village. Fadnavis' confidant added that all the issues concerning cabinet berths and portfolio allocations will be discussed by the senior members of the Mahayuti.
At the same time, the BJP has named Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and former Gujarat CM Vijay Rupani as the central observers to convene a meeting of its newly elected MLAs in Maharashtra. In the recently conducted assembly polls, the Mahayuti won 230 of the 288 assembly seats in Maharashtra. The BJP emerged as the single largest party with 132 seats in its kitty. The Shiv Sena and NCP won 57 and 41 seats, respectively