Mumbai: The Maharashtra Assembly Elections has thrown up plenty of surprises and now the BJP will have to not only work on forming a government but also decide on a chief minister.
There are several contenders for the post to head the country’s economic powerhouse.
Among the main contenders is Devendra Gangadhar Fadnavis, 44, who has been projected as a potential chief ministerial candidate for some time now. He has won from Nagpur South West with a good lead — 113,918 votes as compared to Congress’s Prafulla Gudadhe who got 54,976. As the front-runner for the chief minister’s post, he could be the one of the first Brahmins to head the state since most of Maharashtra’s chief ministers have been from the Maratha community.
The son of a former member of the Legislative Council, Fadnavis became the BJP chief after working through the ranks as an Rashtriya Swayamsevak (RSS) activist to mayor of the Nagpur Municipal Corporation to being a two-term legislator. Known as a good orator with a deep understanding of legislative issues, he is also know for exposing scams.
Joining the ranks of potential candidates is Pankaja Gopinathrao Munde, 35, an MLA, who came into the forefront of state politics and fought the Parli constituency in Marathwada region following the death of her father Gopinath Munde in a car accident some months back. Not only is she a popular leader from the OBC community, she has thrown herself into the ring where her chief ministerial ambitions are not hidden. Prime Minister Narendra Modi began his state election campaign from her constituency.
Vinod Tawde, a senior BJP leader is a member of the legislative council for the second consecutive term and won from the suburban Borivili constituency in Mumbai. Born in a Maratha family in Girgaon area of Mumbai, he has played a number of important roles in the party.
Another aspirant is Eknath Khadse, an MLA from Muktainagar, Jalgaon district, who has won the fifth time from this constituency. He was the leader of the opposition and also the finance minister and later given an additional portfolio of irrigation in the Sena-BJP government. He has raised various problems of north Maharashtra and farmers’ issues in the legislative assembly.
