Eknath Shinde To Be Maharashtra CM, Take Oath At 7:30 PM, Says Devendra Fadnavis

Maharashtra Chief Minister: The development comes a day after Uddhav Thackeray resigned as Maharashtra CM before a floor test in the state Assembly.

Rebel Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde, who led the revolt in the party leading to the collapse of the MVA government, will be the Chief Minister of Maharashtra and take oath at 7.30 pm on Thursday, said BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis. The development comes a day after Uddhav Thackeray resigned as Maharashtra CM before a floor test in the state Assembly.

Shinde, who arrived in Mumbai from Goa, met Fadnavis at the latter's official residence in south Mumbai to discuss formation of the next government in Maharashtra. After their meeting, Shinde and Fadnavis went to the Raj Bhavan along with several BJP leaders. They submitted the letters of the supporting MLAs to Governor BS Koshyari and staked claim to form the government, PTI reported.

Eknath Shinde has claimed that he had the support of 50 MLAs. BJP has 106 MLAs in the Maharashtra Assembly and the support of some smaller parties and independents.

READ | Meet Eknath Shinde, The Maharashtra CM-Designate Whose Revolt Led To MVA Govt Collapse

Addressing a press conference, Shinde said, "The decision that we have taken is committed to Balasaheb's Hindutva and for the development work in the constituencies of our MLAs. We have 50 MLAs with us."

"BJP has 120 MLAs but despite that Devendra Fadnavis didn't take the post of CM. I express my gratitude to him along with PM Modi, Amit Shah and other BJP leaders that they showed generosity and made Balasaheb's Sainik (party-worker) the CM of the state," ANI quoted Shinde as saying.

Former CM Devendra Fadnavis said he won't be part of the Eknath Shinde-led ministry and would support it from outside. "After the swearing-in ceremony today, we will have a cabinet expansion and Shiv Sena and BJP leaders will take the oath. I will stay out of the government," ANI quoted Fadnavis as saying.

Shinde, 58, has been elected for four back-to-back terms -- 2004, 2009, 2014, and 2019 -- in the Maharashtra Assembly. Shinde, a mass leader, played a crucial role in strengthening the Shiv Sena in Thane region and he wields considerable influence there.

Shinde, who originally belongs to Satara district, moved to Thane in the 1970s. Before joining the Shiv Sena, Shinde worked in a brewery and drove an autorickshaw to make ends meet. He was influenced by Shiv Sena supremo Bal Thackeray and Sena's Thane district chief Anand Dighe and joined the party in the 1980s.