According to the latest reports, the expansion of the Maharashtra cabinet headed by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde could transpire after the presidential polls which are slated to be conducted on July 18. The same was reportedly indicted by the Shinde camp.
Presently, Shinde and his deputy from BJP, Devendra Fadnavis are the only cabinet members. Both had taken their oaths on June 30.
Shinde faction’s spokesperson, Deepak Kesarkar while interacting with the media on Monday, July 11, reportedly elaborated that there isn't any difficulty in the cabinet expansion. His response came to a question of if the cabinet expansion was delayed owing to the present legal battle between Shinde's faction and that of former state chief minister Uddhav Thackeray.
Based on accounts, Kesarkar added that an important meeting will be held in New Delhi on July 13 in regard to the presidential election. For the same, a representative from their group will be in attendance. Moreover, on July 14, BJP-led NDA’s presidential candidate Droupadi Murmu will be visiting Mumbai to seek support.
Kesarkar articulated that the MLAs will be busy in the presidential polls and thus questioned who will have the time to prepare for oath-taking. He claimed that they are not in a hurry. For those unversed, electors for the president post include Members of Parliament and MLAs.
On the other hand, in the meeting convened by Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray on Monday at Matoshree, many Shiv Sena MPs urged him to support Murmu for president, reports claim. Speculation has been made that they also asked a door be left open for the possible reconciliation with the BJP and Shinde faction.
Speaking about the same, Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut while interacting with the media uttered that while Murmu was discussed in the meeting, supporting her does not mean supporting the BJP. He voiced that the party's role will be clear in a day or two with Thackeray anticipated making a decision.
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