It’s D-Day in Maharashtra, where the political landscape is complicated by the division of major regional parties. The ruling Mahayuti faces the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA).

As counting began at 8 p.m., Mahayuti took the lead against the MVA in the Assembly which has 288 seats. The ruling coalition is in the lead with 83 seats while the MVA has 42, according to initial trends.

Maharashtra Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar, who is contesting from Colaba Assembly seat, said the Mahayuti comprising BJP, Shiv Sena and NCP would win 175 seats. So far, the MVA, which includes the Shiv Sena faction led by Uddhav Thackeray, the NCP faction of Sharad Pawar, and the Congress are playing a wait-and-see game.

However, even if either party gets a majority, the path to the CM seat remains complex. Each faction within the two main coalitions is lobbying its candidates for the top job.

We take a look at who’s in the fray and the infighting.

In the Mahayuti camp, the BJP is pushing for Devendra Fadnavis while Eknath Shinde’s supporters want him to be CM. In the MVA, it is Congress versus Shiv Sena (Uddhav Thackeray).

Who are the names in the running for the post of CM?

Devendra Fadnavis (Mahayuti)

Known as a wise strategist within the BJP,
Fadnavis is the favorite for the top job.

He was a two-time CM of the state and led the BJP’s campaign in the assembly elections.

He was
decisive in the selection of candidates and negotiations on seat sharing with the NCP and Shiv Sena.

BJP leader Pravin Darekar replaced MP CM Fadnavis for the top post. “I think if anyone from BJP becomes CM, it will be Devendra Fadnavis,” he said.

Also read:
Maharashtra Assembly Elections 2024: How splits and mergers are not new in state politics

Eknath Shinde (Mahayuti)

In June 2022, he led a rebellion within the Shiv Shena and left the party along with the majority of Uddhav Thackeray MLAs and MLAs.

However, his appointment as CM of Maharashtra came as a surprise to many.

According to media reports, BJP leaders felt that her Maratha identity would ease the problems caused by agitators from the community. Soon he won the
legal battle for the real Shiv Sena.

Talking about his potential to become the next CM of Maharashtra, Shiv Sena MP and party spokesperson Sanjay Shirsat said the Assembly elections were contested with Eknath Shinde as the face.

“Voters showed their preference for Shinde by voting. I think Shinde has the right (to be the next chief minister) and we are confident that he will be the next CM,” he said.

Ajit Pawar (Mahayuti)

In the political space of Maharashtra, he has served as Deputy CM four times.

Ajit Pawar has been waiting to be elevated to the top seat since 2004, when his party became the largest party in those elections.

However, his uncle Sharad Pawar gave up his Congress post in exchange for an additional seat in the UPA government.

In July 2023, after numerous disputes,
he led the party rebellion to become vice-CM of the Mahayuti government.

Like Shinde, he also won the legal battle against the NCP-SP and was awarded the party’s clock symbol.

NCP chief Amol Mitkari has pushed the name of his party chief and deputy CM Ajit Pawar for the coveted post. “Whatever the results, the NCP will be the kingmaker,” Mitkari said.

Several other names from the Mahayuti alliance that have surfaced for the post are Pankaja Munde (BJP),
Vinod Tawde (BJP)and Sudhir Mungantiwar (BJP).

Uddhav Thackeray (M.V.A.)

Uddhav Thackeray has only been the chief minister of Maharashtra for two and a half years.

His tenure, however, left a bitter taste in Maharashtra politics due to many controversies and unrest, including the COVID-19 pandemic and the Antilia affair.

Even though Shinde’s party rebelled, he managed to win the Lok Sabha elections with his party winning nine seats, while the Shinde Sena got only six.

When the MVA was to announce the CM face of the alliance, his party leaders argued that he should become the CM since he is the loudest face in the state.

Nana Patole (MVA)

Another contender for the CM post is the Maharashtra Congress chief.

He thinks the grand old party will become the largest party in the Assembly.

In 2014, Patole was a Sakoli BJP MP before switching sides to the Congress due to differences.

When the MVA administration came to power, he was chosen to be the Speaker of the Assembly.

Prithviraj Chauhan (MVA)

He is a non-controversial personality who has been active in the Congress since the days of late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi.

Considered a strategist and technocrat within the party, he served as Minister of State in the Prime Minister’s Office under former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

The former CM is again in the running for the position, but his senior status (78 years old) could work against him.

Supriya Sule (MVA)

Sharad Pawar’s daughter has represented Baramati in Parliament since 2009 and is currently the working president of the NCP-SP party.

On the eve of the Maharashtra Assembly elections, she was accused, along with Nana Patole, of
Bitcoin scam in 2018.

She refuted the allegations and declared her innocence by filing a defamation case against BJP’s Sudhanshu Trivedi.

Jayant Patil (M.V.A.)

The NCP’s Maharashtra unit chief (SP) has represented the Islampur Assembly seat since 1990.

He is now the chief strategist of Sharad Pawar’s party and has held important positions in several governments, notably in the real estate and finance sectors.

Other names in the fray include Ashish Shelar (BJP), Chandrakant Patil (BJP), Aditya Thackeray (Shiv Sena-UBT) and Sunil Tatkare (NCP).

Why is there infighting?

While both alliances are confident of their mandate, a war of words has erupted around the state’s chief ministerial face barely a day before the votes are counted.

Patole’s claim that the Congress would get the maximum number of seats in the new Assembly was met with immediate opposition from Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut. The latter insisted that the chief ministerial face will be decided jointly by all alliance partners once the MVA obtains the majority.

The Rajya Sabha MP said if the Congress high command had told Patole that he would be the chief ministerial face, then national party president Mallikarjun Kharge and its senior leaders Rahul Gandhi, Sonia Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra should announce the same thing.

Speaking to reporters, BJP leader Pravin Darekar highlighted the “internal divisions” within the MVA, saying: “The people of Maharashtra have given a clear mandate. The chief minister will be from the Mahayuti, not the MVA, and certainly not the Congress.

“Congress MP Praniti Shinde and her father and former CM Sushilkumar Shinde supported an independent candidate against Uddhav Thackeray’s candidate in a constituency in Solapur district. These internal divisions reveal a lack of unity. How can parties without internal coherence decide on a chief minister?

He added that Patole’s aspirations to become CM were nothing other than “mungerilal ke haseen sapne (reverie). »

Similar differences are seen in the Mahayuti alliance, with members of the Shiv Sena, BJP and NCP fighting Eknath Shinde, Devendra Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar for the hot seat, respectively.

However, when asked about Mahayuti’s chief ministerial face, Fadnavis asserted that the three Mahayuti parties would come together and take a “good decision”.

With the contribution of agencies