Maharashtra Dy CM Ajit Pawar resigns, cites personal reasons

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar resigned on Tuesday, 80 hours after he was sworn in, citing personal reasons.

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said Ajit Pawar told him that he was quitting due to personal reasons.

Asked if he thought Ajit Pawar extending support to the BJP was a strategy of NCP chief Sharad Pawar, Fadnavis said, "Sharad Pawar will be able to comment on this issue".

"Ajit dada has resigned and he is with us. Uddhav Thackeray will be the chief Minister of Maharashtra for five years," Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut said.

In dramatic twist to political events in Maharashtra, the BJP's Devendra Fadnavis was sworn in by Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari as the next Chief Minister early on Saturday morning, Ajit Pawar as his deputy.

Koshyari administered the oath of office to the two leaders in a hush hush ceremony at the Raj Bhavan, setting off political ripples across parties in the state.

The BJP and the Sena, which fought the last month's Assembly polls in an alliance, secured a comfortable majority by winning 105 and 56 seats respectively.

The Sena, however, broke its three-decade-long ties with the BJP after the latter declined to share the chief minister's post.

The NCP and Congress won 54 and 44 seats respectively.