Devendra Fadnavis
Devendra Fadnavis’ political journey from councilor to Nagpur’s youngest mayor and then to becoming the first BJP Chief Minister of Maharashtra has been steady and with the party’s stellar performance in the assembly elections, it seems that he will hold the top post of the state for the third time. In a state dominated by Maratha politics and leaders, Fadnavis, a 54-year-old leader with a Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) background, is the second Brahmin to become the chief minister of the state after BJP’s old ally Shiv Sena’s Manohar Joshi.
BJP’s lamp came out from Nagpur
Ahead of the 2014 assembly elections, the soft-spoken leader was the obvious first choice for the coveted post, largely because of the confidence that both Prime Minister Narendra Modi and senior BJP leader Amit Shah had in him. Modi had said about him in an election rally, “Devendra is Nagpur’s gift to the country.” Although Modi had campaigned vigorously in the 2014 Lok Sabha and Maharashtra Assembly elections, some credit for the party’s unprecedented victory in the elections went to The then state BJP president Fadnavis also went. Devendra Fadnavis is the son of late Gangadhar Fadnavis, leader of Jan Sangh and later of BJP. Former BJP president Nitin Gadkari calls Gangadhar Fadnavis his “political guru”.
Know the entire journey of Fadnavis
Devendra Fadnavis entered politics at a young age, when he joined the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad, the student wing of the Sangh, in 1989. At the age of 22, he became a councilor in the Nagpur Municipal Corporation and in 1997, at the age of 27, its youngest mayor. Fadnavis contested his first assembly election in 1999 and won. After this he did not look back and won three consecutive assembly elections. He represents the Nagpur South West seat in the outgoing state assembly. Unlike many leaders in Maharashtra, Fadnavis has been clean of corruption charges.
Fadnavis, one of Maharashtra’s most vocal leaders, is also credited with taking on the previous Congress-Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) government in the state over the alleged irrigation scam. Fadnavis suffered a setback after the 2019 assembly elections when then joint Shiv Sena leader Uddhav Thackeray left the pre-poll alliance over the chief ministerial post, leaving the BJP leader’s much-touted “Me Punha Yein (I will come again)” slogan falling short of expectations. Found.
Took oath as CM for the second time on 23 November 2019
Fadnavis took oath as Chief Minister for the second time on 23 November 2019 while Ajit Pawar took oath as Deputy Chief Minister. However, on the orders of the Supreme Court, Fadnavis resigned from the post of Chief Minister on November 26, even before the floor test in the Assembly. Uddhav Thackeray later became the Chief Minister with the support of Sharad Pawar-led NCP. However, Uddhav Thackeray had to step down as Chief Minister after senior Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde broke the party. Later Eknath Shinde became the Chief Minister of Maharashtra. After a large number of leaders left Shiv Sena and Thackeray stepped down, many political observers thought that Fadnavis would become the chief minister. Political observers believed that Fadnavis was behind this entire episode. However, the BJP leadership had other plans and a reluctant Fadnavis was asked to take over the post of Deputy Chief Minister.
Fadnavis comes from a politically active family.
His tenure as Deputy Chief Minister in the last two and a half years has seen remarkable progress and Saturday’s result was something the party had been waiting for. Although Fadnavis comes from a politically active family, both his father and another relative served in the Maharashtra Legislative Council, Fadnavis has nevertheless carved out his own political identity.
Fadnavis’ tenure was not free from challenges
Fadnavis’s first tenure as Chief Minister was a combination of good governance and effective political moves. He earned praise for expediting infrastructure projects, particularly as he gained support from urban voters. However, his tenure was not without challenges. The state suffered significant crop losses due to irregular weather and his initial rejection of loan waivers for affected farmers was widely protested. Another major issue during Fadnavis’ tenure was the Maratha community’s demand for reservation in education and government jobs. Although they passed legislation to meet these demands, a later Supreme Court decision overturned the law. This left many people in the Maratha community dissatisfied and they blamed Fadnavis for this failure.
- The 2019 assembly elections brought a dramatic change in Fadnavis’ political direction. Following Shiv Sena’s refusal to join the government without sharing the chief ministerial post, Fadnavis sought an alternative alliance with Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Ajit Pawar. However, this government was short-lived, falling after only 72 hours. After this Fadnavis played the role of leader of opposition in the state assembly.
- In June 2022, following a rebellion within the Shiv Sena led by Eknath Shinde, Fadnavis was directed by the BJP leadership to return to the government as Deputy Chief Minister under Shinde. Although initially reluctant, Fadnavis accepted the said role, signaling his loyalty to the party leadership.
- Even after the party’s poor performance in the state in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, he played a key role in shaping the seat-sharing arrangement between the BJP and Shinde’s faction. The results of the state assembly elections on Saturday, which are overwhelmingly in favor of the BJP, will determine the next phase of Fadnavis’s political journey. In a constantly evolving political environment, Fadnavis’ ability to adapt and take important decisions could prove crucial for him and his party. (with language inputs)
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