Ajit Pawar will soon replace Eknath Shinde: Sanjay Raut

16 MLAs, including Mr. Shinde, who split from the Shiv Sena a year ago, would face ‘disqualification’, the NCP leader said

NCP leader Praful Patel, Deputy CM Ajit Pawar and Minister Chhagan Bhujbal during the media interaction after taking oath at Sahyadri Guest House in Mumbai July 2. | Photo Credit: Emmanual Yogini

Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut reiterated his assertion on Monday that rebel Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Ajit Pawar, who took oath as the Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra on Sunday, would soon replace Chief Minister Eknath Shinde.

Mr. Raut said that the 16 MLAs (including Mr. Shinde), who had split from the Shiv Sena a year ago, would face “disqualification”.

“The Shiv Sena (UBT), NCP and the Congress will fight unitedly in Maharashtra,” the Rajya Sabha MP said.

However, several BJP leaders dismissed speculation over Mr. Shinde being sidelined and said “he will continue to be our leader”.

Apart from Mr. Pawar, eight other NCP legislators — Chhagan Bhujbal, the NCP supremo’s close confidant Dilip Walse-Patil, Hasan Mushrif, Aatram Dharamraobaba Bhagwantrao, the late BJP leader Gopinath Munde’s nephew Dhananjay Munde, Aditi Tatkare, Sanjay Bansode, and Anil Patil — were also inducted as Ministers in what is now known as the ‘Shinde-Fadnavis-Pawar government’, in a hurriedly conducted ceremony at the Raj Bhavan here on Sunday.