Forty days after the Eknath Shinde-Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government was sworn in, the much-awaited state cabinet expansion is finally going to take place.
Chief minister Shinde is likely to get the urban development department, while his deputy Devendra Fadnavis will keep the crucial home and finance portfolios, as new ministers are set to take oath of office at Raj Bhavan on Tuesday.
Against the full strength of 43, only eight to nine legislators from each side – BJP and Shinde-led Shiv Sena faction – will be inducted into the cabinet, according to people familiar with the preparations.
“A decision on the allocation of ministerial berths to the MLAs sworn in is expected to be taken late on Tuesday evening,” a senior BJP legislator, who did not wish to be named, said.
As per the power-sharing formula, the BJP, with 106 MLAs, will get 27 berths, while the 50-member rebel Sena camp will have 16 departments.
“Though for the Shinde group, the names are to be decided by the CM, the list is expected to be endorsed by our central leadership,” the BJP leader added.
BJP leaders Chandrakant Patil (who also heads the party’s state unit), Sudhir Mungantiwar, Girish Mahajan, Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil, Sanjay Kute, and Mangal Prabhat Lodha are likely to take oath of office on Tuesday. They are expected to get revenue, housing, water resources, and public works departments among others. Senior BJP leader and former school education minister Ashish Shelar is unlikely to be inducted as he is in the race for the next state unit chief.
Among those from the Shinde camp, Gulabrao Patil, Bacchu Kadu, Sandipan Bhumre, Sanjay Shirsat, Uday Samant, and Anil Babar are expected to be sworn in. They are expected to get key departments, including agriculture, industries, public works, water supply, tourism, and general administration.
A leader from the Shinde camp said by deciding to expand the state cabinet in a phased manner, they were also trying to keep the discontent under control. “There would not be dissidents in the BJP, but almost all 50 legislators [including independents] from the Shinde camp are aspiring for a berth. Nine of them, including Shinde, were ministers in the previous Uddhav Thackeray government and they want preference this time. Some of them have even warned the leadership against dropping their names.”
The limited expansion is also being done considering the hearing in the Supreme Court over a clutch of petitions pertaining to the collapse of the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi government among others.
According to a BJP leader, since the cabinet is expected to function at its one-third strength (14 to 16 ministers against 43), many ministers will have to handle multiple departments.
On Monday, Shinde and Fadnavis held a meeting at the former’s bungalow Nandanvan at Malabar Hill for over one-and-a-half hours over the expansion.
The swearing-in will be held at Durbar Hall of Raj Bhavan at 11 am on Tuesday. “Initially, the state considered holding it at the central hall of the state legislature to avoid inconvenience to the relatives of the legislators and the attendees. It finally chose Durbar Hall though it has a seating capacity of 360,” an official from Raj Bhavan said.
The monsoon session of the state legislature is expected to be held from August 17 and is likely to last only for four days.
“The monsoon session, which has been postponed by at least three weeks because of the delay in cabinet expansion, was initially planned to be held from August 10,” an official from Mantralaya said.
While there are speculations that the BJP may opt for the ‘Gujarat pattern’ mirroring the decision to drop all incumbent ministers and induct a fresh set of faces, party leaders said this was unlikely in Maharashtra. “There may not be any major surprises. The party leadership may not prefer to do something disruptive at a time when the Lok Sabha elections are less than two years away,” a BJP leader, requesting anonymity, said.