BJP member of the legislative council Ram Shinde filed his nomination on Wednesday for the post of the council's chairperson. The election is scheduled to be held on Thursday. Since no other nominations were filed, Shinde will be elected unopposed.
If Shinde is elected, the top presiding officer positions in both houses of the state legislature will be held by the Mahayuti, posing serious challenges for the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA).
Last week, BJP MLA Rahul Narwekar was elected unopposed as the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly.
The chairman's post of the legislative council has been vacant for the past two and a half years, following the end of NCP leader Ramraje Naik-Nimbalkar’s term. Although Ramraje has been re-elected to the Legislative Council, he has not been reconsidered for the position. In the interim, the council's proceedings have been overseen by Deputy Chairperson Neelam Gorhe.
Ram Shinde served as the Minister of State for Home Affairs during Devendra Fadnavis’s tenure in 2014. Later, he was appointed as the Cabinet Minister for Water Conservation. However, in the 2019 Assembly elections, he was defeated in the Karjat-Jamkhed constituency by NCP (Sharad Pawar faction) leader Rohit Pawar. A few months ago, Ram Shinde was given an opportunity to serve in the legislative council.
“Mahayuti leaders, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Deputy Chief Ministers Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar recommended my name. They requested the opposition to ensure that the chairman of the legislative council is elected unopposed. I am grateful to everyone for honoring their request. I will make the most of the opportunity given to me by the party,” Shinde said.
Setback for Shinde
Shiv Sena leader Neelam Gorhe has been serving as the deputy chairperson of the legislative council for the past few days. There was a demand within Shiv Sena to appoint Gorhe as the chairperson of the council. Eknath Shinde was particularly keen on securing key portfolios, including the chairman’s post, during the power-sharing discussions. If the election for the chairman’s post had been held before the Assembly elections, Shiv Sena would have recommended Gorhe’s name. However, following the BJP’s significant victory in the elections, the party has staked its claim to the position.
