In a moment that raised eyebrows in Maharashtra’s political circles, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis made a surprising remark about his deputy, Ajit Pawar, during a speech in the legislative assembly.

“You are called the ‘permanent deputy CM’… but my wishes are with you. You will be the Chief Minister someday,” Fadnavis said, addressing Pawar during the discussion on the motion of thanks to the Governor’s address.

During his address, Fadnavis also shared a light-hearted note about the working schedule of Maharashtra’s leadership trio. He said that Ajit Pawar would take on responsibilities early in the morning, and Eknath Shinde would work through the night.

“Ajit Pawar will work in the morning since he is an early riser. I am on duty from 12 noon to midnight while throughout the night… you all know who,” Fadnavis said, referring to Shinde, who is known to work till late hours.

Ajit Pawar, who recently took oath as Deputy Chief Minister for the sixth time, joined the BJP-led Mahayuti government in 2023 after a dramatic split from the NCP, originally founded by his uncle Sharad Pawar.

The ensuing tussle for the party name and symbol saw Ajit Pawar’s faction gain control of both, leaving Sharad Pawar to lead a smaller group aligned with the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi.

Ajit Pawar’s growing stature within the Mahayuti government has been reinforced by his faction’s strong performance in recent assembly elections, where it won 41 of the 57 seats it contested. The BJP, Shiv Sena, and Ajit Pawar’s NCP together secured over 230 of Maharashtra’s 288 seats, leaving the opposition in a weakened position despite a promising show in the Lok Sabha polls.

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