Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde might not be part of the Mahayuti government in Maharashtra if BJP’s Devendra Fanavis is made the Chief Minister, sources told ABP News. Shinde resigned as Maharashtra chief minister on Tuesday as the outgoing assembly’s term ended. Governor CP Radhakrishnan asked Shinde to act as caretaker CM till his successor is appointed.

The Mahayuti coalition performed impressively in the recent elections, winning 230 out of 288 seats. The BJP alone secured 132 seats, making Fadnavis the favourite for the CM’s post, followed by Shinde’s faction of the Shiv Sena with 57 seats and Ajit Pawar’s Nationalist Congress Party NCP) with 41. 

Shiv Sena spokesperson Sheetal Mhatre has claimed that the Maratha community wants Shinde to continue in the top post. She said it was also desirable that Shinde should continue as chief minister in view of the coming elections to the local bodies in the state.

Shinde, who hails from western Maharashtra’s Satara district, belongs to the Maratha community. BJP leader and deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis, considered to be the frontrunner for the CM’s post, is a Brahmin from Nagpur.

The Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) faced a setback in the elections. The Congress won only 16 seats, while Sharad Pawar’s NCP(SCP) won 10 seats and Uddhav Thackeray’s (UBT) won only 20 seats.