Allocation of portfolios in Maharashtra to take place after special session of House

Eknath Shinde and Devendra Fadnavis

The decision on forming a new cabinet under Chief Minister Eknath Shinde will be taken after holding a special two-day session of the state Assembly beginning Sunday, Maharashtra BJP leader Sudhir Mungantiwar said on Saturday. The session will see the election of the Assembly Speaker on July 3 and a floor test of the new government on July 4.

The decision to allocate portfolios will be taken once the two-day session is over. BJP leaders have been holding meetings with a focus on the two-day session. Once this session is over, the state leadership of both the parties (the BJP and the Eknath Shinde faction of Shiv Sena) can decide about the allocation of portfolios," he said.

Shinde took oath as the chief minister on Thursday with BJP's Devendra Fadnavis as his deputy following the collapse of the Uddhav Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi government on Wednesday.