A year after the Eknath Shinde-Devendra Fadnavis government ascended to power in Maharashtra, the long-anticipated cabinet expansion is likely to finally take place next week. Adding to the buzz, chief minister Shinde made an unscheduled visit to Delhi to meet union home minister Amit Shah.
While the Shinde-led Shiv Sena is expected to get two ministerial berths in the union cabinet, the Maharashtra formula is likely to be fifty-fifty for the BJP and its ally.
The BJP leadership has already told its cadres that not much should be expected out of the long-pending cabinet expansion. Whether some of the ministers will be dropped also remains to be seen.
“There is tremendous restlessness within the Shinde faction. Many hopefuls have been upset about the inordinate delay in the expansion,” a leader told CNN-News18.
At present, the Maharashtra government is functioning at just 40 per cent of the allowed cabinet capacity. While the cabinet can expand to accommodate 43 members, the current strength is 18.
Apart from balancing the caste and religious equations, this cabinet might also see some representation of women. The state government has received flak for not having any women in the cabinet till now.
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