Maharashtra deputy chief minister and Nationalist Congress Party’s rebel leader Ajit Pawar skipped accompanying Maharashtra Chief Minister and Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde, and Deputy Chief minister and Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Devendra Fadnavis on a trip to Delhi, sparking buzz of trouble in paradise for Maharashtra’s triple engine government.
The Opposition in Maharashtra described the absenteeism of Ajit Pawar from the Delhi trip as “political illness” that could potentially rock the government.
“Ajit Pawar seems to be suffering from political illness…He is apparently upset over the delay in appointment of district guardian ministers,” said Opposition leader Vijay Wadettiwar, as quoted by Indian Express.
“It has just been three months since the triple engine government came to power…and I have heard that one faction is upset,” NCP MP Supriya Sule said.
“I heard that the faction which is upset met Fadnavis and conveyed their resentment to him. In three months, the honeymoon is not yet over, and already problems have started cropping up. In just three months, such news is surfacing…Who is running the government?” she asked.
According to an Indian Express citing people familiar with the development in NCP (Ajit Pawar faction) , it was reported that the Maharashtra Deputy Chief minister was unhappy with the fact that the appointment of some of his ministers as district guardian ministers is pending.
The report also stated that Ajit Pawar had demanded the district guardian ministership for Chhagan Bhujbal (Nashik), Hasan Mushrif (Kolhapur), Dhananjay Munde (Beed) and Aditi Tatkare (Raigad).
Earlier, Ajit Pawar was allotted the key Finance portfolio in the tripartite government.
The role of the guardian minister is to bring personal attention and support to the district, working with the district collector and other officials to address local needs and promote growth.
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Ajit Pawar replaces BJP’s Chandrakant Patil as Pune guardian minister
On Wednesday, NCP leader Ajit Pawar was named as the guardian minister of his home district Pune in place of senior BJP leader and cabinet minister Chandrakant Patil.
As per a revised list of the guardian ministers for 12 districts issued by the Chief Minister’s Office, Chandrakant Patil has been given the responsibility of Solapur and Amravati districts.
NCP ministers Dilip Walse Patil, Hasan Mushrif and Dhananjay Munde will be the guardian ministers for Buldhana, Kolhapur, and Beed districts, respectively, as per the list.
Their cabinet colleagues Sanjay Bandsode, Dhrmarao Baba Atram, and Anil Patil (also belonging to the Ajit Pawar camp) are given the responsibility of Parbhani, Gondia, and Nandurbar districts, respectively.
This comes after speculations were rife that the triple engine government was in trouble as Ajit Pawar was upset over the fact that his faction leader were not being made guardian ministers.
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