Present at the event were Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Deputy CMs Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar, along with other significant ministers from the Mahayuti government.
#WATCH | Mumbai, Maharashtra | NCP leader Chhagan Bhujbal takes the oath of office as a minister in the Maharashtra government at Raj Bhavan.
Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis, Deputy CMs Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar were also in attendance. pic.twitter.com/B215pQvRkP— ANI (@ANI) May 20, 2025
He joined the cabinet after Dhananjay Munde, another NCP leader, resigned as the food, civil supplies, and consumer protection minister in March due to the arrest of his aide Walmik Karad, who was linked to the murder of Sarpanch Santosh Deshmukh.
Born on October 15, 1947, Chhagan Bhujbal has had an extraordinary political career spanning several decades. He was notably missing from Chief Minister Fadnavis’ cabinet expansion in December 2024.
In his early days, he was a vegetable vendor at Mumbai’s Byculla Market and later obtained a diploma in engineering.
Bhujbal, who represents Yeola in Nashik district as an MLA, has previously held significant cabinet positions and served as deputy chief minister in various Maharashtra governments.
His political journey began with the Shiv Sena in the 1960s during a time when the regional movement for Marathi speakers’ rights was flourishing. He remained affiliated with this party for around 25 years.
In 1985, he was elected as a Shiv Sena MLA from Mazagaon and secured the seat two times. However, due to disagreements with the Shiv Sena regarding OBC reservations during the Mandal movement, he exited the party in 1991 to join the Indian National Congress.
Subsequently, in 1999, he became a member of Sharad Pawar’s NCP. That same year, he was appointed as Maharashtra’s Deputy Chief Minister and Home Minister in the Congress-NCP coalition government, serving as the fifth Deputy Chief Minister from October 18, 1999, to December 23, 2003.
The Mahayuti coalition comprises the BJP, Shiv Sena, and NCP.
