Maharashtra politics: Newly-elected LoP Ajit Pawar meets Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari

Mumbai (Maharashtra): A day after National Congress Party (NCP) leader Ajit Pawar was elected as the Leader of Opposition in the Maharashtra Assembly, he met Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari at Raj Bhavan on Tuesday."After accepting the responsibility of the post of Leader of Opposition in the Legislative Assembly, Governor Hon. @BSKoshyari ji`s goodwill visit," Pawar tweeted after the meeting. Calling it a courtesy call, the office of the Governor of Maharashtra tweeted, "The newly-elected Leader of the Opposition in the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly Ajit Pawar met Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari at Raj Bhavan, Mumbai. This was a courtesy call."

Former Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister and National Congress Party (NCP) leader Ajit Pawar was elected as the Leader of Opposition in the Maharashtra Assembly on Monday after the party leader Jayant Patil proposed his name for the same in the Assembly. Assembly`s Principal Secretary informed that Pawar`s name for the LoP was proposed by NCP leader Jayant Patil and it was approved by the Assembly.

Earlier on Monday, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde won the crucial floor test in the state Assembly on the last day of the two-day special session of the House. In the 288-member House, 164 MLAs voted in favour of Shinde, while 99 voted against it. Three legislators abstained from voting, while 21 legislators, including Congress`s Ashok Chavan and Vijay Wadettiwar, were absent.

Notably, Shinde led a revolt against Shiv Sena leading to the collapse of the 31-month-old Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government and took oath as the Chief Minister of Maharashtra on June 30. In the floor test, Shiv Sena MLA from Shetkari Kamgar Paksh of Uddhav Thackeray faction Shyamsundar Shinde also voted in favour of Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde in the trust vote. He did not join the Shinde faction but voted in their favour.

Former ministers Ashok Chavan and Vijay Wadettiwar of Congress were out of the House, hence they could not vote, while Nawab Malik and Anil Deshmukh also did not come to House for voting. Soon after the Trust Vote ended, Shiv Sena leader and earlier whip Sunil Prabhu raised the issue of the whip but Speaker interrupted him and asked him to sit and said he has already everything on record. The trust vote came a day after BJP`s Rahul Narwekar was elected the Assembly Speaker. On Sunday, Narwekar reinstated Shinde as the Shiv Sena`s legislative party leader and also recognised the appointment of Gogawale as the chief whip of the Shiv Sena.

Maha Deputy CM Fadnavis holds roadshow in Nagpur

Maharashtra`s new Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Tuesday held a roadshow in Nagpur after he received a warm welcome upon his arrival in the city. Fadnavis arrived at the Nagpur airport to visit his home after his recent victory in the government formation in the state, from where he took out a road show from the airport.

"The people of Nagpur have always given me love and elected me five times. Today I have come to Nagpur for the first time after becoming Deputy Chief Minister. I express my gratitude to the people who have come to show their love for me," the Deputy Chief Minister said. 

Fadnavis` visit came a day after the Eknath Shinde-BJP alliance won the vote of trust in the state Assembly.The new Eknath Shinde-led government in Maharashtra won the floor test on Monday by a 164-99 margin, proving his government`s majority and cementing his position as chief minister of the state and the leader of the Shiv Sena.164 votes were polled in favour of Shinde, while 99 votes were polled against the newly formed BJP-Shinde camp coalition.

Shiv Sena calls Eknath Shinde's trust vote victory 'stolen majority'

A day after Eknath Shinde won the Vote of Confidence in the Maharashtra Assembly, Shiv Sena on Tuesday termed the victory a "stolen majority" and said that it was "not the belief of the people" of the state. The party also took a jibe at Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis asking who was the person who stopped him from taking oath as a Chief Minister."

At the time of the floor test, the BJP-backed Shinde group was supported by 164 MLAs and 99 voted against it. Some MLAs of Congress, and NCP were absent at the time of the majority test. It is surprising that senior ministers like Ashok Chavan and Vijay Wadettiwar could not reach the assembly. 

Shiv Sena mouthpiece Saamna said in its editorial on Tuesday."This question stands before Maharashtra. BJP and Shinde faction got the vote of confidence passed in the assembly, this is a stolen majority. This is not the belief of 11 crore people of Maharashtra," it added.

The mouthpiece further said Fadnavis` remarks on his return were funny and cautioned that he "should not forget that Eknath Shinde is the Chief Minister"."I came again and brought others along, Devendra Fadnavis made such a statement on this occasion, which is funny. The way he came, it must not have been in their dreams. He should not forget that Eknath Shinde is the Chief Minister. There is a change of power in Maharashtra, in which the love of principles, morals and ideas is also not visible," it said.

(With ANI Inputs)