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Keep Shinde in check, but message for ex-CM too? Why BJP pushed Fadnavis to become deputy CM

Devendra Fadnavis had initially announced Thursday that we would not be part of the Eknath Shinde govt in Maharashtra, but he subsequently took oath as deputy CM.

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New Delhi/Mumbai: On Thursday, BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis took many, including his own party members in the state, by surprise when he announced that Shiv Sena rebel Eknath Shinde will be the new Maharashtra chief minister.

His body language confident, even indulgent, Fadnavis further announced that he will stay out of the new government being formed by the Shiv Sena rebels and the BJP, and will only “support” it, as and when required.

A little ahead of the swearing-in ceremony at Mumbai’s Raj Bhavan, however, a third chair was added on the dais and Fadnavis was sworn in as deputy CM to Shinde, after having been his boss for five years as part of the 2014-19 BJP-Shiv Sena government in the state.

It may have seemed like a last-minute confusion in an otherwise immaculately planned operation to oust the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government, a coalition of the Shiv Sena (led by Uddhav Thackeray), the Nationalist Congress Party and the Congress.

But multiple BJP sources told ThePrint that the decision to make Fadnavis step in as deputy CM was one that was well “well thought out” by the central leadership, and while it had been discussed with Fadnavis earlier, it was communicated as final to the state leadership at the last minute.

Making Fadnavis Shinde’s deputy will ensure that there’s a strong voice in the government to stamp the BJP’s authority on it, said sources.

Many in the BJP have also indicated that the party leadership was displeased with what they saw as Fadnavis’ projection of himself as a larger-than-life politician. Making him deputy to Shinde, the party felt, would help keep him in check, they added.

“It was a well thought-out decision that would bring BJP advantage. It was just communicated as final to the state leadership last minute,” a senior BJP functionary in the central leadership told ThePrint. “Whether it’s a snub to Fadnavis or not, you can look at it the way you want.”


Also read: How Devendra Fadnavis put inglorious 2019 exit behind him, made good on ‘Me punha yein’ promise


‘Fadnavis went off script’

According to BJP sources, at a meeting with the central leadership a few days ago, it was indicated to Devendra Fadnavis that making Eknath Shinde the Maharashtra CM would be “more conducive” in the current atmosphere, though nothing was confirmed to him at this point.

“He had been told that the party was looking at having Shinde as the CM, something which would work in the favour of the government, as well as the BJP in the long run, as it would further weaken the hold of (the Uddhav Thackeray-led) Shiv Sena,” said the functionary quoted above.

The leader pointed out that the Sena under Thackeray had criticised the BJP for what it described as its “lust for power” (during the last few days’ political turmoil in the state). By installing a ‘Shiv Sainik’ it would also silence the detractors, he said.

However, according to sources, Fadnavis went off script Thursday and announced that he would not be part of the government and the cabinet. Sources said the top leadership was upset by the way Fadnavis conducted himself in making such an announcement without consulting the leadership.

The senior party functionary quoted above said, “This is how his (Fadnavis’) working style is. He said more than what he should have. He was expected to simply announce that Eknath Shinde would be CM and stop there.”

A second source in the central BJP leadership said, “This is something that had not been discussed and the central leadership was taken by surprise. Soon after this, senior leaders such as Amit Shah and J.P. Nadda discussed the matter and it was conveyed to Fadnavis that he had to be part of the government as the deputy chief minister.”

From Shinde’s boss to Shinde’s deputy

Shinde was part of Fadnavis’ council of ministers, handling the Public Works Department (Undertakings) portfolio, during the 2014-19 BJP-Shiv Sena government in Maharashtra.

As CM, Fadnavis was known to concentrate power in the Chief Minister’s Office and practically drove the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation’s (MSRDC) flagship project — the ambitious Mumbai-Nagpur expressway, known as ‘Samruddhi Mahamarg’— as his pet project, although it was under Shinde’s ministerial jurisdiction.

According to party sources, Fadnavis was “more upset at the prospect of serving as the deputy to Shinde” — after having served as the chief minister of Maharashtra — than losing the CM’s chair to the rebel Shiv Sena leader.

“Although he was upset over not being made the CM, he had still made peace with it. But he was quite certain about not being part of the government and playing second fiddle to Shinde publicly,” the second source said.

However, the top leadership was quite clear in its directions, following which Fadnavis took oath as the deputy CM.

Shortly before the swearing-in ceremony, BJP president J.P. Nadda announced that the party had decided that Fadnavis should join the government as deputy CM.

This was followed by Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s tweet, saying that, on Nadda’s request, Fadnavis had decided to be part of the government, displaying a “big heart”.

Fadnavis tweeted ahead of the oath ceremony that, “as a sincere karyakarta, I am following the orders of my party”. “The directions of the party that helped me reach the top post are supreme for me,” he said.

The second party source said, “If you look at the tweet he (Fadnavis) posted, he has taken pains to convey that as a true party worker he has decided to follow the directions of the party, with the underlying message being that he is not doing it happily.”

Some in the party’s central leadership also pointed out how Fadnavis’ body language at the swearing-in ceremony conveyed his displeasure.

A third source in the BJP’s central leadership said Prime Minister Narendra Modi had stepped in too, asking Fadnavis to be part of the government. “The entire state unit was upset with the developments (Shinde being made CM),” he added.

A BJP leader in Maharashtra told ThePrint that Fadnavis’ appointment as deputy CM came as a surprise, but is a “strategic one that will help the BJP have a strong leader drive the administration”.

(Edited by Poulomi Banerjee)


Also read: Devendra Fadnavis and Eknath Shinde have a common enemy but different priorities


 

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