The rebel camp of Shiv Sena legislators on Monday indicated that the much-awaited expansion of the Maharashtra cabinet led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde may take place after the July 18 presidential election. Speaking to reporters here, Deepak Kesarkar, spokesperson of the rebel Shiv Sena MLA faction, said, “There is no problem in the expansion of the cabinet.
He was replying to a question whether the cabinet expansion was being delayed due to the ongoing legal battle between the rebel camp and the Shiv Sena faction led by former chief minister Uddhav Thackeray.
Currently, Chief Minister Shinde, who heads the rebel camp, and his deputy BJP’s Devendra Fadnavis – both sworn in on June 30 – are the only members of the cabinet. Kesarkar said there is an important meeting in New Delhi on July 13 regarding the election of the next president and a representative of the rebel group will be involved.
On July 14, BJP-led NDA’s presidential candidate Draupadi Murmu will go to Mumbai to seek support. Preparations for the presidential election will take place on July 16 and 17 before voting on July 18. Electors for the top constitutional post include members of parliament and legislators. “So the MLAs will be busy with the presidential election… so who will have time to prepare for taking oath,” he said. They are in no hurry,” he said.
Last week, Shinde and Fadnavis visited New Delhi and met Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP President JP Nadda. The cabinet expansion in Maharashtra is believed to have been discussed during the visit with top BJP officials. ,