gadkari-goyal-among-6-maharashtra-ministers

Six MPs from Maharashtra have been sworn in as part of the Modi 3.0 coalition government, with the BJP securing four berths and allies Shiv Sena and RPI (A) each receiving one.

 

NCP, led by Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, declined the BJP's offer of Minister of State (MoS) with independent charge, insisting on a cabinet berth for Praful Patel.

 

In the second term of the Modi government (2019-24), eight ministers from Maharashtra represented the BJP and its allies. However, this number decreased to six on Sunday.

 

Among the retained cabinet ministers are BJP MPs Nitin Gadkari and Piyush Goyal.

 

Raksha Khadse, the BJP's only woman MP from Maharashtra, and first-time MP Murlidhar Mohol were sworn in as Ministers of State.

 

RPI (A) chief Ramdas Athawale retained his position as MoS with independent charge, and Prataprao Jadhav, from the Shiv Sena led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, also took oath as an MoS with independent charge.

 

The NCP, led by Ajit Pawar, declined the MoS offer, demanding a cabinet berth for Rajya Sabha member Praful Patel due to his experience.

 

Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis assured that coalition formulas must be respected and that the NCP would be considered in future cabinet expansions.

 

The eight ministers from Maharashtra in the previous government included Nitin Gadkari, Piyush Goyal, Narayan Rane, Bhagwat Karad, Raosaheb Danve, Bharti Pawar, and Kapil Patil, all from BJP, and Ramdas Athawale of the RPI (A).

 

In the recent Lok Sabha elections, the BJP won only nine seats in Maharashtra, compared to 23 in 2019. The Shiv Sena secured seven seats, and the NCP led by Ajit Pawar won one.

 

Gadkari, Goyal, Khadse, and Mohol won from Nagpur, Mumbai North, Raver, and Pune Lok Sabha constituencies, respectively.

 

Notably, the BJP did not re-induct Narayan Rane into the Union cabinet despite his victory in the Ratnagiri-Sindhudurg Lok Sabha seat.

 

Three other BJP ministers from the previous government - Raosaheb Danve, Bharati Pawar, and Kapil Patil - lost in the recent elections.