Sunetra Pawar Takes Oath as Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister
Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde were present at the ceremony. The venue echoed with slogans of “Ajit Dada Amar Rahe” raised by NCP leaders and party workers.
Mumbai: Sunetra Pawar, wife of late NCP leader Ajit Pawar who died in a tragic plane crash, was sworn in as the Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra on Saturday evening.
The oath ceremony was held at Lok Bhavan in Mumbai, where Governor Acharya Devvrat administered the oath of office and secrecy to Sunetra Pawar. With this, she became the first woman to hold the post of Deputy Chief Minister in Maharashtra.
Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde were present at the ceremony. The venue echoed with slogans of “Ajit Dada Amar Rahe” raised by NCP leaders and party workers.
Prior to the oath-taking, Sunetra Pawar was unanimously elected as the Leader of the NCP Legislative Party. Currently a Rajya Sabha Member of Parliament, she will be required to get elected as an MLA or MLC within six months, as per constitutional provisions.
Meanwhile, Sunetra Pawar will also continue to hold charge of the Excise and Sports portfolios, which were earlier handled by Ajit Pawar. However, in view of the upcoming budget session in March, the Finance portfolio previously held by Ajit Pawar has been temporarily retained by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. It is learnt that the Finance Department may later be allocated to the NCP.
