Senior NCP leader and Samata Parishad founder Chhagan Bhujbal was sworn in as minister by Maharashtra Governor CP Radhakrishnan on Tuesday. The ceremony was held in the presence of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Deputy Chief Ministers Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar, NCP Working President Praful Patel and other dignitaries.
After taking oath, Bhujbal expressed his gratitude to the political leadership. He thanked the Chief Minister, both Deputy Chief Ministers, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah, as well as the citizens of his constituency and the workers of the Samta Parishad.
Bhujbal is likely to get the charge of Food and Civil Supplies Department, which he had previously handled in the Uddhav Thackeray and Eknath Shinde governments. It is worth mentioning that Bhujbal was unhappy due to being denied a ministerial post during the cabinet expansion on December 15. Expressing his displeasure, he had said that despite raising the OBC issue prominently during the assembly elections, he was ignored.
Additionally, Bhujbal was upset over his nomination not being considered for Rajya Sabha seats twice. However, NCP president Ajit Pawar, working president Praful Patel and state unit chief Sunil Tatkare unanimously decided to include Bhujbal in the cabinet.
Bhujbal’s appointment holds strategic importance for the NCP, especially after another OBC leader Dhananjay Munde had to resign in March over a murder case. Bhujbal has been playing a leading role in protecting OBC reservation during the Maratha reservation movement and is a strong supporter of caste-based census.
In the context of the Supreme Court’s direction to the state government to complete the local body elections within four months, Bhujbal’s inclusion in the cabinet is being considered a politically important step for the NCP.