'I'll be back': 5 years on, Fadnavis reclaims No.1 spot in Maharashtra

Devendra Fadnavis

A common refrain in politics goes something like this: "Never rule someone out" and Devendra Fadnavis can claim to be the newest embodiment of that adage.

A campaign promise that Fadnavis ran throughout the 2019 Assembly polls is 'Mee Punha Yein', that translates to-'I'll be back'. With the Maha Vikas Agadi coming to power in 2019, the remark was thrown at him repeatedly
as taunt by his rivals. The MVA reiterated the jab with greater frequency after Fadnavis became Eknath Shinde's deputy 2.5 years ago.

But, staying true to his words, Fadnavis proved his pronouncements true with the resounding mandate on November 23. On Wednesday, hours after being named as the BJP's Maharashtra chief minister pick, Fadnavis staked claim to form the government in the state.

It was caretaker CM Shinde who proposed his name on Wednesday, Shinde said, "Fadnavis had recommended my name as CM, & & this time, we are recommending his." The joint address on Wednesday marked the first combined public appearance by the three alliance leaders, namely- Eknath Shinde, Devender Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar after hectic parleys spanning over 10 days over the chief minister's position since the declaration of the poll outcome on November 23.

Mahayuti, which consists of three major camps, Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde), NCP (Ajit Pawar) and BJP, secured a landslide victory, winning 230 seats in the 288-member assembly. The saffron party, however, emerged as the single largest party, missing the majority mark of 145 with 132 seats. The Eknath Shinde faction and Ajit Pawar-NCP secured 57 and 41 seats respectively.