What challenges lie ahead for Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis? | Mumbai news - Hindustan Times
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What challenges lie ahead for Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis?

Hindustan Times | By, Mumbai
Aug 22, 2017 12:32 AM IST

The 2019 polls won’t be easy for Maharashtra CM Fadnavis, who has just crossed the halfway mark in his five-year tenure

Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis has put a stop to rumours of him shifting to Delhi as a Union minister. At a meeting of the BJP’s state executive body held last week, he said, “I am still the chief minister and am not going anywhere. There is no possibility of me being called to Delhi…”

It is Fadnavis’ political and electoral management skills that have proven to be useful to his party and have given him dividends.(HT)
It is Fadnavis’ political and electoral management skills that have proven to be useful to his party and have given him dividends.(HT)

There have been speculations that Fadnavis could be shifted to Delhi.

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Within party circles, there was talk of him being asked to join the Union cabinet owing to vacancies in key ministries, following the exit of high-profile ministers such as Goa chief minister Manohar Parrikar and Vice President Venkaiah Naidu.

Fadnavis has now dismissed such conjecture. He chose his party platform to clear the air, possibly because the speculations started within the BJP first. Fadnavis insisted that he would remain chief minister for the full five-year term. He has asked the party men to prepare for the 2019 elections.

His firm assurances indicates that he continues to enjoy the full support of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP chief Amit Shah.

Following the 2019 Assembly elections, Modi and Shah picked him over seniors such as Eknath Khadse, Sudhir Mungantiwar and Vinod Tawde. Then came doubts over his political skills within the party. Close to three years in his tenure, Fadnavis is not the same greenhorn chief minister. He has managed the state well so far.

His government’s performance has not been great, but it has not been bad either. He has given a push to infrastructure and has cultivated a pro-industry image.

One can discuss the merits and demerits of his decisions, but his government seems to be responsive to demands such as the farm loan waiver.

It is Fadnavis’ political and electoral management skills that have proven to be useful to his party and have given him dividends.

He has handled Opposition parties well and has kept them under control. This is significant, considering that the Opposition has stalwarts such as NCP chief Sharad Pawar.

He has been dealing with the Shiv Sena and its chief Uddhav Thackeray tactfully. The Sena continues to make noise publicly, but has not created any trouble for Fadnavis within the government.

The Maratha agitation was a test of his political skill. The protests of the politically and socially dominant community could have been a headache for the BJP, but a year later, they have lost their sheen. As Maratha community outfits became aggressive, the other communities reacted. This was seen in the civic and district council polls, where the BJP’s success made Maratha outfits and their supporters reconsider their plans.

During the farmers’ agitation, Fadnavis reacted quickly, denying the Opposition parties a political advantage. It was the Opposition parties that picked the farm loan waiver as an issue and cornered Fadnavis over it. To counter this, he went ahead and announced the waiver, even though it was bad economics.

Fadnavis’ only weak point could have been election management. However, he has shown that he can win elections for his party. The BJP’s victory in Mira Bhayander, where it swept the civic polls on Monday, confirms this.

In a nutshell, this means the BJP cannot afford to move Fadnavis out of Maharashtra at this juncture. The state is significant in party’s plan to win 350-plus seats in the next Lok Sabha elections. It is also important for the party to retain Maharashtra when the Assembly elections are held in 2019. As such, Fadnavis seems to be firm in his saddle and has also earned some more support of his bosses.

Of course, the 2019 polls won’t be easy for Fadnavis. He has just crossed the halfway mark in his five-year tenure.

The coming days will test his leadership skills. His toughest task will to deliver on the promises he made to the people, especially when there is strain on state finances following the farm loan waiver. Implementing the loan waiver will be a huge task.

People will expect him to act in response to the allegations of corruption against housing minister Prakash Mehta.

Considering how some of his ministers are functioning, it won’t be surprising if more cases of corruption come to light. Fadnavis has maintained his clean image so far, but people won’t take him seriously if he keeps shielding his ministers. His success will depend on how he handles these challenges.

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  • ABOUT THE AUTHOR
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    Shailesh Gaikwad is political editor and heads the political bureau in Hindustan Times' Mumbai edition.In his career of over 20 years, he has covered Maharashtra politics, state government and urban governance issues.

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