Ajit Pawar Splits NCP: Takes Oath As Deputy CM 

Mumbai/Hyderabad, July 2 (Maxim News):  In a major political upset, leader of Opposition Ajit Pawar today ‘split’ the Nationalist Congress party to take oath as Deputy Chief Minister in the ruling alliance of Shiv Sena-Bharatiya Janata Party government of Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis. 

Along with Pawar, senior leaders, and MLAs like Chhagan Bhujbal, Dilip Walse-Patil, Hasan Mushrif, Dhananjay Munde, Dharmarao Baba Atram, Aditi Sunil Tatkare, Sanjay Bansode, Anil Patel, were also sworn-in as ministers this afternoon. 

This is also the first time in its history that Maharashtra has got two Deputy CMs – Fadnavis and Pawar – after a hectic morning full of cloak-and-dagger drama. 

Reacting to the developments, NCP President Sharad Pawar told his close aides in Pune that the ‘party doesn’t support the swearing-in ceremony” and it is the individual decision of all who have left to join Ajit Pawar’s group. The party has also claimed that 80 percent of those who have joined Ajit Pawar shall return to the NCP fold “very soon”. 

Shiv Sena (UBT) MP and chief Spokesperson Sanjay Raut said that almost all the Ministers sworn in today have serious enforcement inquiries pending against them.  “All those whom the BJP had threatened to throw in jail have now been inducted as Ministers said Raut.  

The Shiv Sena-BJP top leaders have welcomed Ajit Pawar’s decision to join their government saying it will further strengthen them to give a strong regime in the state. 

Shinde said that the move by Pawar will now give a ‘triple-engine’ to the government and the administration will move at the speed of Bullet Train for the progress of the state. (Maxim News) 

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