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Devendra Fadnavis named Leader of Opposition

Fadnavis, 49, had resigned on Tuesday, three days after taking oath as CM. He formed a government with support of a splinter group led by NCP’s Ajit Pawar, who was sworn in as deputy CM.

Updated on: Dec 2, 2019, 03:51:47 IST
Hindustan Times, Mumbai | By
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Former chief minister and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Devendra Fadnavis was appointed as the Leader of Opposition in the Maharashtra assembly on Sunday.

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Devendra Fadnavis was appointed as the Leader of Opposition in the Maharashtra assembly (HT File)
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Devendra Fadnavis was appointed as the Leader of Opposition in the Maharashtra assembly (HT File)

Nana Patole, the newly appointed Speaker of the House, made the announcement.Chief minister Uddhav Thackeray and senior leaders of Shiv Sena, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Congress congratulated Fadnavis.

Soon after the announcement, the Assembly witnessed a war of words between chief minister Uddhav Thackeray and his predecessor Fadnavis as the former taunted that he was in the House though he never said “Me punha yein” (I will come back), an election slogan of the BJP leader who retorted that he will return as CM and they only have to wait for some time. “I will not hesitate to admit that we have been good friends for a long time. Had you listened to us, I would have been sitting at home watching today’s developments on TV,” Thackeray said in his congratulatory speech after Fadnavis’ election, adding, “I never said I will come back, but I came in this House.”

NCP’s Jayant Patil also took a swipe at Fadnavis and said,“He [Fadnavis] said he would return, but didn’t say where he’ll sit [in the House].”

Fadnavis, 49, had resigned on Tuesday, three days after taking oath as CM. He formed a government with support of a splinter group led by NCP’s Ajit Pawar, who was sworn in as deputy CM. But both of them resigned a day before a trust vote ordered by the Supreme Court as they couldn’t muster up the numbers. Ajit Pawar has since returned to NCP.

(With agency inputs)
  • Surendra P Gangan
    ABOUT THE AUTHOR
    Surendra P Gangan

    Surendra P. Gangan is an Associate Editor with the Mumbai Edition of the Hindustan Times, covering politics, social and economic issues, and Maharashtra affairs. With more than three decades of experience in journalism, he has reported extensively on Maharashtra’s political landscape, its evolving power equations and the issues that shape public life in the state. A firm believer in the value of ground reporting, he enjoyes pursuing stories that generate conversation and make an impact beyond the newsroom. Outside journalism, he was university-level cricketer during his college days and remains an amateur swimmer and an enthusiastic trekker.Read More