New middle name for Devendra Fadnavis invited to take oath in Maharashtra

Mumbai:

Senior BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis, one of the architects of Mahayuti’s resounding victory in the Maharashtra polls, is set to take oath as chief minister for the third time tomorrow after the BJP leadership l was finalized today as his choice for the top job.

Preparations for the grand event at Mumbai’s Azad Maidan are in their final stages. Invitation cards were printed and sent to the politically important elite of the state. There is, however, an interesting detail. The invitation, issued by chief secretary Sujata Saunik, names the chosen chief minister as ‘Devendra Sarita Gangadharrao Fadnavis’. While Sarita is her mother’s name, Gangadhar is her father’s. While it is customary for people in Maharashtra to use their father’s name as their middle name, this is arguably the first time Mr. Fadnavis has used his mother’s name for official purposes.

The BJP leader used ‘Devendra Gangadhar Fadnavis’ as his name in the affidavit filed ahead of this year’s Assembly elections. Invitations to the swearing-in ceremonies in 2014 and 2019, when Mr Fadnavis was sworn in, also did not carry his mother’s name.

Born into a Brahmin family, Mr Fadnavis lost his father, a member of the state legislative council, to cancer when he was still a teenager. His father Gangadhar Fadnavis was one of the leaders of Jan Sangh and then the BJP. After the poll results, his mother said that everyone in the BJP wanted her son to become chief minister again. “Everyone in the party wants him to become the next chief minister. It is obvious that others also want him to take up this role. He is indeed one of the favorites of Prime Minister Narendra Modi who considered as a son,” said Sarita Fadnavis. Mr. Fadnavis’s wife, Amruta Fadnavis, is a banker and social activist and they have a daughter Divija.