Maharashtra portfolios: Ajit Pawar gets Finance, Anil Deshmukh Home
Mumbai, January 5
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister and senior NCP leader Ajit Pawar has got the finance and planning department while his party colleague Anil Deshmukh is the new Home minister of the state, a senior official said on Sunday.
Besides, first-time Shiv Sena MLA Aaditya Thackeray, who is the son of Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, has been given charge of the environment, tourism and protocol departments, he said.
Senior Congress leader Balasaheb Thorat has got the revenue ministry, the official added.
With this allocation of portfolios, the Sharad Pawar-led NCP has got most of the ‘plum’ ministries.
There were speculations that either Ajit Pawar or Jayant Patil of the NCP would get the Home department, but the portfolio has been allocated to their party colleague Anil Deshmukh.
Earlier, Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari approved the allocation of portfolios as proposed by the chief minister.
The list of portfolios to be allocated to ministers was sent to the governor on Saturday evening.
The Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi government, comprising the Shiv Sena, NCP and Congress, had been facing criticism from the opposition BJP for delay in the allocation of portfolios despite being in power for over a month now.
Chief Minister Thackeray and six of his council members – two each from the Shiv Sena, NCP and Congress – took oath on November 28.
Thackeray expanded his month-old ministry on December 30 by inducting 36 ministers.
Discontent in Cong over ‘raw deal’ in portfolio allocation
Meanwhile, a section of Maharashtra Congress leaders blamed state unit chief Balasaheb Thorat for the party getting a “raw deal” as compared to the Shiv Sena and NCP in the Uddhav Thackeray-led alliance government.
Their ire is also directed towards NCP supremo Sharad Pawar, who emerged as the key player in the alliance, with a Congress leader claiming that they need someone in the state unit who could stand up to the Maratha strongman.
Some Congress leaders say they demanded at least two ministries from the list comprising Agriculture, Rural Development, Industries, Housing, Transport and Cooperation, but the allies Shiv Sena and NCP refused to pay heed.
Instead, ministries like culture, salt pan and port development, which were earlier with the Shiv Sena, have been handed over to the Congress.
“The Congress has got a raw deal in power-sharing among the three alliance partners. Thorat has not been able to put forth the Congress’ interest during deliberations on power-sharing,” a senior party leader told PTI on condition of anonymity.
According to sources, Congress leader Nitin Raut, who has been made the Energy Minister, is unhappy over the Public Works Department being given to his senior colleague and former Chief Minister Ashok Chavan and Thorat being allocated the Revenue Department.
Citing how intense was the bitterness in the Congress rank and file, a leader said vandalising party office and burning effigy of a party general secretary never happened earlier, and added that “such acts of indiscipline need to be taken seriously”. PTI
