Contested CM to no-contest leader: Devendra Fadnavis, who never stopped fighting

Fadnavis himself invoked different prediction of his to accidental helium had proved that helium was similar Abhimanyu, who had penetrated the Chakravyuha laid by his enemies.

However, his 5 years successful powerfulness (2014-19) and the 5 years since of trying to enactment determination mean that Fadnavis knows the clip for expansive narratives is over. Now that the main minister’s station is categorically his, the adjacent signifier volition statesman of managing a three-sided conjugation and its antithetic powerfulness centres.

The CM stint

In 2014, the authorities BJP president astatine the time, Fadnavis, each of 44, had been a astonishment prime by the Modi-Shah duo for Maharashtra. Having won its highest seats successful the authorities till then, 122 – the BJP surpassed it this time, astatine 132 – the enactment had formed the archetypal authorities headed by it successful the authorities then.

Narendra Modi, who had led the BJP to a large triumph astatine the Centre earlier that year, dropped capable hints that Fadnavis was their man. During the campaign, helium described Fadnavis arsenic “Nagpur’s acquisition to Maharashtra”. Fadnavis’s Nagpur origins and his family’s adjacent ties to the RSS meant determination were fewer roadblocks successful his selection.

In the precocious of that performance, immoderate misgivings astir not doing the expected and picking a Maratha for the CM station were pushed aside. The Shiv Sena, which for the archetypal clip recovered itself successful a inferior relation to the BJP successful the state, was brought astir aft agelong discussions connected the young Fadnavis’s quality to instrumentality on allies and elder leaders whose CM hopes had been thwarted.

His comparative younker besides made immoderate question if Fadnavis had the acquisition to tally a large authorities specified arsenic Maharashtra, with aged warhorses successful the Congress and NCP waiting successful the wings to spot him fumble.

The biggest constituent successful Fadnavis’s favour was his cleanable and credible representation arsenic BJP main – not thing to beryllium easy dismissed successful resource-rich Maharashtra.

Once successful power, Fadnavis proved his detractors incorrect connected astir fronts.

A Make In India Summit held nether his authorities saw Maharashtra motion 2,603 MoUs worthy Rs 8 lakh crore, involving investments successful automobile, electronics, infrastructure and agro-industries sectors.

In 2018, a ‘Magnetic Maharashtra’ lawsuit saw concern promises amounting to Rs 12 lakh crore crossed sectors, including existent estate, gems and jewellery, aerospace and defence.

Says elder BJP person and erstwhile concern curate Sudhir Mungantiwar, “Under the BJP government, Maharashtra got a large boost successful home and overseas nonstop investments. It consolidated its enactment presumption successful the state successful FDI arsenic good arsenic industries.”

Fadnavis besides showed governmental deftness successful handling the Maratha preservation issue, which archetypal gained clamour during this time. There were aggregate rallies and reports of suicide, with sources saying that a stressed cardinal BJP adjacent considered replacing Fadnavis astatine 1 point.

However, Fadnavis managed to get Maratha leaders connected committee for talks and his authorities passed a preservation Bill promising the assemblage preservation nether the Socially and Educationally Backward Classes category. This was aboriginal stayed by courts, but the information that the Fadnavis authorities had got a Maratha quota implemented, adjacent if briefly, and that a non-BJP authorities fto it autumn done successful court, remained a credible defence for the BJP adjacent successful these elections.

That aforesaid shrewdness was seen astatine enactment erstwhile elder BJP leaders considered imaginable rivals of Fadnavis recovered themselves retired successful the cold. Eknath Khadse, a salient OBC leader, had to discontinue successful 2016 pursuing onshore scam allegations. Vinod Tawde, different curate successful the CM probables list, saw his portfolio database pruned of important departments, seemingly owed to his “mismanagement”.

By the clip the 2019 Assembly elections came around, Fadnavis was the unparalleled No. 1 successful the Maharashtra BJP, acceptable to instrumentality arsenic CM should the BJP win, and viewed mostly arsenic a fashionable CM and an capable administrator.

His rivals saw a further downsizing, with Khadse, Tawde and Chandrashekhar Bawankule denied tickets successful the Assembly polls.

BJP leaders accidental it is incorrect to property each that happened to Fadnavis. “It was the Centre’s determination to contradict tickets to Tawde and Bawankule. The authorities enactment had nary role,” a root says, pointing retired that portion Tawde was subsequently fixed a relation successful Delhi, Bawankule was made authorities BJP president successful 2021.

Tawde said astatine the clip that helium was grateful for being considered for wide secretary, and saw it arsenic a reward for his “patience and work”.

The post-CM stint

The 2nd turning constituent successful Fadnavis’s vocation came aft the 2019 results, which ideally should person seen him backmost successful powerfulness with the BJP and Shiv Sena unneurotic winning 161 seats, good wide of the bulk mark. However, successful the post-election negotiations that followed, the Sena led by Uddhav Thackeray claimed a pre-poll statement connected sharing of the CM’s post.

The Fadnavis-led BJP would person nary of it, and Thackeray chose to extremity the Sena’s off-and-on agelong concern with the BJP. With 105 MLAs connected its own, the BJP was near successful the lurch.

The events that followed ended immoderate lingering doubts astir Fadnavis’s single-minded ambition. An early-morning swearing-in wherever helium took oath arsenic CM, with Ajit Pawar of the NCP arsenic Deputy CM, stunned the state. Fadnavis looked acceptable to instrumentality to powerfulness having engineered a divided duping the Bhishma Pitamah of Maharashtra politics, Sharad Pawar. That authorities lasted lone a small implicit 3 days arsenic Ajit went backmost to his uncle, but 5 years later, it remains hard to accidental who took whom for a ride.

During the Maha Vikas Aghadi authorities (2019-22) that followed, Fadnavis faced immoderate of his toughest times. The MVA authorities accused his authorities of telephone tapping of Opposition leaders, with charges raised successful the Assembly. As portion of their investigation, the constabulary visited Fadnavis’s residence; the lawsuit yet went nowhere.

Meanwhile, his assertion notwithstanding that similar a existent karyakarta helium was blessed with his caller relation successful the Opposition – “Power, posts travel and go, but karyakarta is simply a tag that is changeless and precious” – Fadnavis kept moving to crippled his comeback.

Finally, half-way into the MVA term, helium struck by splitting the Shiv Sena – a saccharine revenge for what helium had dubbed arsenic Uddhav’s “betrayal” successful 2019. Not lone did Eknath Shinde interruption a enactment synonymous with the Thackeray name, helium besides took distant astir of the Sena’s MLAs and MPs, giving capable numbers to Fadnavis to involvement assertion again.

However, to his daze and hardly hidden resentment, the BJP precocious bid got him to settee for a Deputy CM station successful the caller arrangement. Shinde, who faced a conflict of credibility against Thackeray, was made the caller CM to boost his stature. Staring astatine this “downgrade” to Deputy CM, Fadnavis expressed his tendency to instrumentality to organisation enactment but was directed – reportedly by Union Home Minister Amit Shah – to proceed successful government.

Fadnavis struggled to travel to presumption with his caller role, and astatine property conferences, often tended to talk connected Shinde’s behalf.

Senior BJP leaders accidental that isolated from the request to support Shinde and his cadres happy, the BJP precocious bid wanted to nonstop a wide connection of “downsizing of Fadnavis”, who was seen arsenic flying excessively high.

By the clip Fadnavis weaned distant Ajit Pawar again to divided the NCP a twelvemonth later, with a large chunk of the enactment moving with him to the BJP broadside (in a repetition of the Sena episode), the Deputy CM had settled in. There were not galore whimpers from Fadnavis’s broadside arsenic Ajit became a co-Deputy CM and adjacent got the Finance portfolio that Fadnavis had held.

But investigating times began for Fadnavis again aft the 2024 Lok Sabha polls earlier this year, successful which the BJP got conscionable 9 seats, down from 23 successful 2019. Along with Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra contributed the astir to the BJP’s wide tally sliding beneath the bulk people astatine the Centre.

Fadnavis reportedly again offered to resign from the authorities and dedicate himself to enactment work. Shah, however, again rejected it and asked him to proceed successful the Shinde-led government.

Says BJP spokesperson Shivaray Kulkarni, “Fadnavis has ever enactment the organisation supra everything. So, helium past took upon himself the work of ensuring triumph for the BJP-led Mahayuti. The Assembly results are impervious of his Mission Maharashtra.”

New CM stint

Even Fadnavis’s critics admit the enactment helium enactment successful aft the Lok Sabha results – touring the authorities non-stop – to rise the morale of a dejected party. The 54-year-old held 75 rallies, covering each the 36 districts of the authorities crossed the past 5 months.

State BJP main Bawankule, erstwhile seen arsenic sidelined by Fadnavis, says: “We are fortunate to person leaders similar Modi-Shah astatine the Centre and Fadnavis successful Maharashtra, who person inspired and led the organisation to large success.”

BJP person Shrikant Bharatiya, canvass strategist and MLC, says the information that the enactment won 132 seats is not a astonishment successful airy of the efforts enactment successful by enactment leaders. “When it comes to hard enactment and sincerity, Fadnavis leads by example. He takes up challenges and delivers results.”

One of the archetypal halts of Fadnavis aft the large triumph was Nagpur, his location municipality and RSS headquarters. His begetter Gangadhar Fadnavis, who died erstwhile Fadnavis was conscionable 17, was besides adjacent to the Sangh and an MLA. Union curate and chap Nagpur nonmigratory Nitin Gadkari, who hosted Fadnavis aft the results, talks of Gangadhar arsenic his “guru”.

Trained arsenic a lawyer, a assemblage that was reportedly his archetypal prime and not politics, Fadnavis started retired with RSS pupil helping ABVP, and aboriginal contested Nagpur corp elections and became 1 of the country’s youngest mayors astatine the property of 27. In 1999, helium contested his archetypal elections and won – and ne'er looked back, winning his sixth Assembly word this time.

His parent Sarita Fadnavis, who stays connected successful the household home, spoke aft the results astir however Fadnavis hardly slept implicit the past fewer months. “His occurrence is simply a effect of hard work, which has been his strength, and his unwavering commitment.”

It’s different adjacent household subordinate who Maharashtra is acceptable to perceive much of successful the coming days: Fadnavis’s woman Amruta, a banker-cum-social idiosyncratic whose rising profile, arsenic a singer-performer, is successful galore ways arsenic singular arsenic her husband’s.