Mumbai: Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray on Thursday took oath as the 18th chief minister of Maharashtra. Thackeray, 59, became the third Sena leader after Manohar Joshi and Narayan Rane to occupy the top post. Thackeray took over as chief minister over a month after results of the Maharashtra Assembly elections were declared on October 24. Eknath Shinde, Subhash Desai (both Shiv Sena), Jayant Patil, Chhagan Bhujbal (both NCP), Balasaheb Thorat and Nitin Raut (both Congress) were sworn in as ministers.
Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari administered oath to Thackeray and the six ministers at the ceremony held at Shivaji Park, the venue of Shiv Sena''s Dussehra rallies. Those present at the ceremony included NCP chief Sharad Pawar, senior Congress leaders Ahmed Patel and Mallikarjun Kharge, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath, MNS chief Raj Thackeray and DMK leader MK Stalin. Former Maharashtra deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar, his cousin and MP Supriya Sule, Uddhav Thackeray''s wife Rashmi, his MLA-son Aaditya and industrialist Mukesh Ambani''s wife Nita were also among those who attended the ceremony.
The Shiv Sena, NCP and Congress formed the government after the Thackeray-led party fell out with pre-poll ally BJP over sharing the chief ministerial post. The Assembly election was held on October 21 and its result was declared on October 24. The BJP emerged as the single largest party winning 105 seats. The Shiv Sena, NCP and Congress won 56, 54 and 44 seats respectively in the 288-member Maharashtra Assembly. Thursday''s swearing in ceremony follows days of dramatic political developments, which included a three-day government formed by unexpected support from NCP leader Ajit Pawar, who has since returned to the Sharad Pawar-led party fold.
There was speculation that Ajit Pawar would be sworn in as deputy chief minister on Thursday but only two NCP ministers took oath at the ceremony. A special session of the 14th state Assembly was held here on Wednesday where oath was administered to 285 newly- elected members by pro tem Speaker Kalidas Kolambkar who was appointed to the post by Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari. In terms of number of terms, Thackeray will be the 29th chief minister of the state.
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