Mumbai: Three days after allocation of portfolios to all ministers, CM Uddhav Thackeray announced the names of guardian ministers of all the 36 districts in the state.
Aaditya Thackeray will be the guardian minister for Mumbai suburban district, even though Worli constituency, of which he is the sitting MLA, falls under the Mumbai City district. Aslam Sheikh of the Congress has been appointed guardian minister of Mumbai City.
Aaditya's appointment as the guardian minister of Mumbai Suburban assumes significance, as 26 assembly constituencies, from Borivli to Bandra, fall under this district.
This the most crucial area for the Shiv Sena, as its erstwhile ally, the BJP, is strong in this district because of the predominance of Gujarati and North Indian voters. The Thackerays live in this district.
Aaditya's primary task will be to strengthen the Sena in these areas. Keeping in mind the BMC election in 2022, Aaditya's appointment will be useful in ensuring a majority in the House for the Shiv Sena.
The Mumbai Suburban district has 172 seats while Mumbai City has 55 in the BMC. Sheikh will have to ensure progress in Mumbai City, as it has 10 assembly constituencies, from Dharavi to Colaba. Nanded will be taken care of by Ashok Chavan while Chhagan Bhujbal will be guardian minister of Nashik.
Eknath Shinde has been appointed guardian minister of Thane and the Naxal-infested Gadchiroli. He is the only minister handling two districts. Seven ministers in the cabinet were not given charge of any district.
Despite being cabinet ministers, Jitendra Awhad and Sandipan Bhumare did not get the responsibility of any district.
The remaining five who failed to become guardian ministers were ministers of state Dattatray Bharane, Vishwajeet Kadam, Rajendra Yadravkar, Sanjay Bansode and Prajakt Tanpure. Of the 36 guardian ministers, 13 are from the Sena, 12 from the NCP and 11 from the Congress.
