Ajit Pawar agrees to Devendra Fadnavis as Maharashtra CM, says report

In 2023, Ajit Pawar had led the rebellion in NCP and formed a new faction with 41 lawmakers.

Amid intense political drama in Maharashtra, there are reports that Nationalist Congress Party president Ajit Pawar has agreed to Devendra Fadnavis as Maharashtra CM. According to a report by News18, Pawar has given his approval on Fadnavis as the next CM.

However, the suspense remain as there are no updates from Eknath Shinde camp. The report comes ahead of the key Mahayuti meeting in New Delhi today. All alliance leaders – Ajit Pawar, Devendra Fadnavis, Eknath Shinde – are likely to meet Union Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP president JP Nadda later in the day.

On November 23, Mahayuti posted a thumping win with the alliance winning 230 seats. The BJP emerged as the single largest party with 132 seats. Ajit Pawar's NCP has won 41 seats and Eknath Shinde's Shiv Sena registered victory on 57 seats.

On the other hand, Maha Vikas Aghadi was decimated with regional stalwarts such as Sharad Pawar and Uddhav Thackeray posting poor performance. While Shiv Sena (UBT) managed just 20 seats, Sharad Pawar's NCP (SP) got only 10 seats.

Pawar vs Pawar

The Maharashtra election results also settled the Pawar vs Pawar debate, say NCP leaders. During the joint presser in Mumbai on the day of the election results, Ajit Pawar said, "now everyone know who is the real NCP."

Months after the vertical split of NCP, Pawar trounced his 83-year-old uncle in the political battle of legitimacy and legacy. In 2023, Ajit Pawar had led the rebellion in NCP and formed a new faction with 41 lawmakers.