Devendra Fadnavis Set to Take Oath as Maharashtra Chief Minsiter on December 5

Devendra Fadnavis is set to be sworn in as the Chief Minister of Maharashtra on December 5. The decision was made during a meeting of the state BJP legislators in Mumbai on Wednesday. Fadnavis will begin his third term in office with an oath-taking ceremony at Azad Maidan in Mumbai on Thursday. The BJP leadership finalizing Fadnavis as its candidate for the Chief Minister post ends weeks of speculation about who would take the top job. Fadnavis is expected to meet Governor CP Radhakrishnan later today to formally stake the BJP’s claim to form the next government in the state.

The decision comes two weeks after the BJP-led Mahayuti alliance secured a resounding victory in the Maharashtra Assembly elections. At the BJP's legislature party meeting, Fadnavis expressed his gratitude for the support of the party's 132 MLAs. He thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his backing and emphasized that the BJP's "double engine" government would drive development in Maharashtra.

The swearing-in ceremony will take place on Thursday at Azad Maidan, in the presence of Prime Minister Modi. Before the meeting of the legislature party, the BJP's core committee held discussions and finalized Fadnavis as their choice for Chief Minister. Union Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and former Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani were appointed as central observers for the meeting.

Ahead of the meeting, BJP leader Sudhir Mungantiwar confirmed that representatives from the Mahayuti alliance would meet Governor Radhakrishnan at 3:30 PM on Wednesday to formally claim the mandate to form the government.

Fadnavis’ selection ends a period of intense suspense that lasted for 11 days following the election results. The BJP-led alliance, which won 230 out of the 288 seats in the Maharashtra Assembly, had to navigate internal discussions about the leadership. Although Shiv Sena leaders had emphasized that Eknath Shinde, who led the alliance in the elections, should remain Chief Minister, the BJP insisted on claiming the top post, having won 132 out of the 148 seats it contested. Eventually, Shinde publicly stated he would not block the formation of the government and would accept any decision made by Prime Minister Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah.

Despite Shinde's conciliatory stance, there was still significant posturing from some Shiv Sena leaders, who stressed the need to recognize Shinde's role in the alliance's victory. However, with the BJP needing only one ally to form a majority, and reports indicating that the NCP has pledged its support, the path to Fadnavis taking over as Chief Minister became clear.​