Eknath Shinde has demanded home ministry, claims Sena MLA amid portfolio talks

MUMBAI: Though Mahayuti 2.0 began to unravel soon after Thursday's opulent oath-taking ceremony in Mumbai's Azad Maidan, some knots in the alliance still seem to remain intact as Shiv Sena leader Bharat Gogavale on Friday said Eknath Shinde has pitched for home ministry, which the BJP might not be willing to accommodate conveniently.
"When Devendra Fadnavis was deputy chief minister (in Shinde-led government), he also used to have the home department. Saheb (Shinde) has demanded the home and talks on portfolio are in progress," Gogavale told news agency.

Gogavale, one of the few from Shinde's close circles, also said that cabinet expansion will likely happen between December 11 and 16, just ahead of the winter session of the state legislature.
The winter session of the legislature will start in Nagpur, the state's second capital, on December 16.

When asked to whom Shinde has made the pitch for crucial home ministry, Gogavale said it was probably Prime Minister Narendra Modi or Union Home Minister Amit Shah.

Attempts are being made to change the portfolios held by the Shiv Sena in the previous Mahayuti government," maintained MLA from Mahad in Raigad district.

Devendra Fadnavis took oath as chief minister of Maharashtra for the third time with a paradigm-shattering mandate as the BJP has won 132 out of the 148 seats it fought in the recently concluded state poll.

After the oath-taking ceremony, Shinde, who had changed roles with Fadnavis, said that when he was CM, he considered himself a common man but now that he was deputy CM, he would consider himself a "dedicated to common man".

The BJP has emerged as the largest party with 132 seats in the 288-member House. Along with its allies, Shiv Sena and NCP, the BJP-led Mahayuti coalition has a majority of 230 seats.