Days after chief minister Devendra Fadnavis and his deputy Eknath Shinde collectively rubbished stories of a rift between them, Fadnavis reversed his personal determination of appointing a bureaucrat to move the Maharashtra State Highway Transport Company (MSRTC) and has cleared the decks for the appointment of transport minister and Shiv Sena chief Pratap Sarnaik as chairman of the company.
The CM’s determination final month to nominate a bureaucrat was perceived as the results of the tussle that has been brewing between him and Shinde ever for the reason that formation of the Mahayuti 2.0 authorities in December 2024. (PTI)
The CM’s determination final month to nominate a bureaucrat was perceived as the results of the tussle that has been brewing between him and Shinde ever for the reason that formation of the Mahayuti 2.0 authorities in December 2024. The newest transfer may very well be a bid to pacify Shinde, who has been disgruntled on account of Fadnavis staying a sequence of selections and initiatives launched or introduced by him throughout his tenure as chief minister of the earlier Mahayuti authorities.
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Fadnavis on February 6 had appointed extra chief secretary (transport) Sanjay Sethi as chairman of MSRTC. It was the primary time within the historical past of the company {that a} bureaucrat was appointed to this place, which was all the time held by both the transport minister or a political nominee. Throughout his CMship, Shinde had appointed his celebration’s MLA Bharat Gogawale.
The appointment was seen because the persevering with try by Fadnavis to chop the Sena right down to dimension. Within the first three months of his authorities, the CM took at the very least a dozen such selections—he divested most Sena leaders of their Y+ safety, refused to present the guardian ministership of Raigad and Nashik to the celebration, and stalled selections comparable to procuring 1,310 buses for MSRTC and over 900 ambulances for the well being division.
Shinde, on his half, has typically made his unhappiness identified. The chilly struggle between the previous and present chief minister had created an unease within the Mahayuti camp. There was discuss in political circles that Shinde had even met union house minister Amit Shah to complain about Fadnavis’ strikes when he was in Delhi to attend the Marathi Sahitya Sammelan.
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Final week, nonetheless, within the press convention on the eve of the price range session, Fadnavis and Shinde claimed all was hunky-dory. “Everything is cool, but there is no cold war between us,” quipped Fadnavis. “All these are stories cooked up by the media.” On Friday, the CM declared within the meeting that not one of the initiatives introduced by Shinde had been stalled or stayed by him. It’s in opposition to this backdrop that he has additionally reversed his MSRTC determination, and appointed Sarnaik as chairman.
Sarnaik instructed HT that it was the prerogative of the chief minister to determine who may very well be appointed as chairperson of MSRTC. “If I am appointed, I will try to do justice to the post,” he stated. A Mantralaya official stated that Fadnavis had cleared the file, and the appointment order could be issued in a day or two.
In response to Mahayuti leaders, the CM has reportedly determined to smoke the peace pipe for now, as the federal government is dealing with flak on numerous fronts. “A senior minister had to resign even before the government completed three months, and other two ministers are facing serious charges,” stated a Sena chief requesting anonymity. “Public sentiment is against the government on account of cases like the murder of Massajog sarpanch Santosh Deshmukh. The two leaders must have decided to bury their differences at least for now.”
The chief additionally pointed to the cancellation of the appointment of Vaidehi Ranade as joint managing director of MSRTC. Ranade was appointed to the publish to interchange an officer who was believed to be very near Shinde. “The appointment was cancelled within a month, and it is the second such example of ‘reconciliation’ between Shinde and Fadnavis,” stated the Sena chief.