Preparing for the swearing-in of Maha de Fadnavis – Firstpost

After weeks of intense political discussions, the suspense over Maharashtra’s next chief minister is finally over.

Today (November 5), Devendra Fadnavis will take oath as the new chief minister of the state in a grand ceremony at Azad Maidan in Mumbai.

Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar will also take oath as deputies at the event.

Here’s everything we know about the ceremony.

The taking of the oath

Devendra Fadnavis is chosen to lead the Mahayuti government, and the stage is set for his swearing-in on Thursday.

On Wednesday, Fadnavis was unanimously chosen as the leader of the Maharashtra BJP legislature, marking his return to power.

Over 132 elected MLAs voted to elect Fadnavis at the party meeting yesterday, which was also attended by Union Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and former Gujarat CM Vijay Rupani, along with Fadnavis.

Fadnavis, Shinde and Pawar also called on Governor CP Radhakrishnan to demand the formation of the Mahayuti government.

Addressing a press conference, the two-time Maharashtra chief minister termed the post a “technical post” and highlighted the cooperative decision-making process of the Mahayuti alliance, which includes Fadnavis, Shinde and Pawar.

Significantly, former Maharashtra CM and Shiv Sena chief Eknath Shinde has agreed to take over as his deputy.

The government swearing-in is a notable replay of the 2019 ceremony at Raj Bhavan, where Fadnavis was sworn in as CM and Ajit Pawar as deputy.

Fadnavis will visit Siddhivinayak temple before the ceremony, according to News18.

Guest Lists

Around 42,000 participants are expected at the event.

The ceremony will take place in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other senior leaders.

Union Ministers Amit Shah, Piyush Goyal, Nitin Gadkari, Chief Ministers and Deputy CMs of NDA-ruled states including Yogi Adityanath of Uttar Pradesh and N Chandrababu Naidu of Andhra Pradesh, Uddhav Thackeray, Sharad Pawar, other major political leaders of the state, erstwhile Maharashtra. CM, renowned personalities from Marathi and Hindi film industries, leading industrialists including Mukesh Ambani, plus More than 100 spiritual leaders and famous personalities from academia and literary world will also attend the oath-taking ceremony.

Other participants include workers from the BJP, NCP and Shiv Sena.

At least 1,000 women (ladki bahin beneficiaries) will also attend the swearing-in ceremony.

Special provisions

For the oath-taking ceremony, Azad Maidan was transformed into a fortified area under the leadership of Commissioner Vivek Phansalkar, Special Commissioner of Police Deven Bharti and Joint Commissioner (Law and Order) Satyanarayan Chaudhary.

More than 4,000 police officers, including specialist units such as the State Reserve Police Force (SRPF), Quick Response Teams (QRT) and Bomb Squads, were deployed to ensure the safety of participants .

Police asked participants to report anything suspicious, follow instructions and call their hotlines (100, 112) for immediate assistance.

According to BJP leader Prasad Lad, special arrangements have been made for the participants, including separate seats for 2,000 VVIPs.

“It will be broadcast live across the state wherever LED screens are available. Special arrangements have been made to accommodate over 40,000 BJP supporters and separate seats have been provided for 2,000 VVIPs, including leaders of various religions,” he said.

According to a News18 reports, National Award-winning music composer duo Ajay-Atul will perform at the main celebration.

Traffic arrangements

Mumbai Police have stepped up security measures due to the large-scale nature of the swearing-in. To control traffic, a number of roads will be closed or diverted.

Around 280 traffic department personnel will manage traffic in south Mumbai.

The traffic advisories issued by the Mumbai Police will be in force from 12 noon on December 5 until the end of the event.

Since there will be no parking near the venue, participants are encouraged to take public transportation, including local trains, to travel to Azad Maidan.

The following routes are recommended to the Mumbai Traffic Police:

• CSTM to Vasudev Balwant Phadke Chowk: Vehicular traffic will be diverted via LT Road-Chakala Junction-Right Turn-DN Road-CSTM Junction. Reverse route to follow for the return trip.

• Mahatma Gandhi Road (CST to Vasudev Balwant Phadke Chowk): Traffic will be diverted via LT Road-Chakala Junction-Right Turn-DN Road-CSTM. Another way to get there is to take the Maharishi Karve Road (MK Road).

• Hazari Mal Somani Road: Traffic will be restricted from Chafekar Bandhu Chowk (OCS junction) to CSTM junction. The optional route starts from Chafekar Bandhu Chowk (OCS Junction)-Hutatma Chowk-Kala Ghoda-K Dabhade Marg-Shahid Bhagat Singh Marg.

• Princess Street Bridge (Meghdutt Bridge) (Southbound): Traffic will be diverted via NS Road towards Shyamaldas Gandhi Junction.

• Rambhau Salgaonkar Road (one-way route): Double lane will be allowed for vehicles from Indu Clinic Junction (Syed Jamadar Chowk to Volga Chowk) between 12:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m.

Maharashtra election results

In the November 20 elections in Maharashtra, the BJP secured 132 seats out of 288, demonstrating its resounding success.

This is the best performance of the saffron festival in the state so far.

The Mahayuti alliance holds an overwhelming majority of 230 seats alongside its partners, Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena and Ajit Pawar’s NCP.

While the Congress won only 16 seats, Shiv Sena (UBT) 20 and Sharad Pawar’s NCP group 10, the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) coalition, on the other hand, suffered a crushing defeat.

With the contribution of agencies