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Maharashtra gets new chief minister after political tussle
Industries Minister Ashok Chavan was announced as the new chief minister on Friday after Vilasrao Deshmukh was pressurised into submitting his resignation following public anger over the terror attacks in Mumbai last week.
- Agencies
- Published: 23:46 December 5, 2008
Maharashtra: Industries Minister Ashok Chavan was announced as the new chief minister on Friday after Vilasrao Deshmukh was pressurised into submitting his resignation following public anger over the terror attacks in Mumbai last week.
The Sharad Pawar led Nationalist Congress Party named Chhagan Bhujbal, who has been holding the Public Works Department portfolio, has been named as the new deputy chief minister who will also hold the home ministry and will replace R R Patil who resigned a few days back owning moral responsibility to the terror attacks.
The nomination of 50-year-old Chavan, son of the late S. B. Chavan who was twice chief minister and Nehru-Gandhi loyalist, was announced by senior leader Pranab Mukherjee.
This was announced shortly after Revenue Minister Narayan Rane, long contender for the chief minister's post and a bitter critic of Deshmukh, lashed out at Sonia Gandhi, Deshmukh and Chavan - who he felt was too junior to be a contender.
Chavan is unassuming and non-controversial, having been elected from the Lok Sabha constituency from Nanded, the political base of the family in Marathwada, when he was barely 28, in 1987.
He became Member of the Legislative Council in 1992 and a year later found a berth in the state cabinet as a minister of state.
In 1999, Chavan was elected to the legislative assembly from Mudkhed constituency and since then he has been a senior minister holding key portfolios.
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