Thackeray is Maharastra CM after weeks of drama

Mumbai: Shiv Sena President Uddhav B. Thackeray was sworn-in as the new Chief Minister of Maharashtra in a grand function held at the Shivaji Park here on Thursday evening.

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Governor B.S. Koshyari administered the oath of office and secrecy to Uddhav Thackeray, 59, who sported a striking saffron coloured kurta-pyjama, the Sena party’s colour.

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In an unusual gesture, soon after completing the formalities, Uddhav Thackeray stepped to the front of the stage and knelt down, touched his hands and head on the floor to express his gratitude to the people of Maharashtra for the honour bestowed on him.

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Uddhav is the first member from Thackeray family to become the Chief Minister and the third Shiv Sena leader to hold the top post after Manohar Joshi and Narayan Rane.

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He is leading a government of the Maha Vikas Aghadi, an alliance of Shiv Sena, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), and Congress.

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NCP leaders Jayant Rajaram Patil, and Chhagan Chandrakant Bhujbal took oath as ministers in Maharashtra’s alliance government led by Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray.

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Shiv Sena leaders Eknath Shinde and Subhash Desai were also sworn in as ministers.

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Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath, Kapil Sibbal, KTS Tulsi, MK Stalin, SK Shinde, Sanjay Raut, and Prithviraj Chavan, MNS leader and Uddhav’s cousin Raj Thackeray were among several leaders who attended the ceremony.

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On Tuesday, Thackeray had been unanimously elected as the leader of the tri-party alliance.

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Industrialist Mukesh Ambani, his wife Nita Ambani and son Anant were also present at the ceremony, as was Raj Thackeray, Uddhav Thackeray’s estranged cousin.

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Former Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis of the BJP, who quit two days ago after a huge controversy over the manner in which he took power, also attended the oath.

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NCP leader Ajit Pawar. Ajit Pawar is tipped to be Deputy Chief Minister, this time to Uddhav Thackeray. This was his second oath ceremony in six days; on Saturday, he had stunned his party by taking oath along with Fadnavis. Four days later, Ajit Pawar resigned – having failed to draw NCP MLAs to the BJP’s side – and returned to his party.

###Maharashtra, Nov 28 (ANI): Shiv Sena Chief Uddhav Thackeray greets people after taking oath as Chief Minister of Maharashtra at Shivaji Park in Mumbai on Thursday. (ANI Photo/ TV Grab)
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