National Desk: Rebel Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde was sworn-in as the new Chief Minister of Maharashtra on Thursday.
He was sworn as the CM after the Devendra Fadnavis led Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the state made the announcement along with Shinde in a press conference in Mumbai.
The swearing-in ceremony took place at Raj Bhawan in the presence of the state Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari and the leaders from BJP, Shiv Sena and other government officials.
Along with Shinde, the former Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis took oath as the Deputy Chief Minister.
Shinde’s ascend as the chief minister came as a huge surprise to everyone as it was initially thought that he would be made the deputy of Fadnavis who is the leader of the party with highest majority in the current state parliament.
Political analysts regard this as an intelligent political masterstroke by the BJP in order to mitigate the influence of the Thackeray family in the Shiv Sena and Maharashtra politics.
The supporters of Shinde were seen celebrating the occasion with much fanfare in his constituency in Thane and across Maharashtra.
However, the question still remains unclear as to who will be legally entitled to use the brand name and political symbol of Shiv Sena and its founder Bal Thackeray in the future.
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