Senior Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut said in Mumbai on Tuesday that Maharashtra’s next chief minister would be from his party, as the deadlock over forming a new government continued. He said the state’s politics was changing and that the Sena would win what he called its fight for justice.

What Raut said

Raut, a Rajya Sabha member, told reporters that decisions about Maharashtra would be made in Maharashtra and that the chief minister would be a Sena leader.

His comments came amid reports that the Sena was making friendly approaches to the NCP. Raut, however, said NCP chief Sharad Pawar would not become the next chief minister.

Background

The BJP and the Shiv Sena have been fighting over the chief minister’s post, holding up government formation. This is despite the October 24 assembly results giving the two allies 161 seats together, well above the majority mark of 145 in the 288-member House. The BJP won 105 seats, the Shiv Sena 56, the NCP 54 and the Congress 44.

What happened next

After the BJP-Shiv Sena alliance broke down, Uddhav Thackeray of the Shiv Sena became Chief Minister in November 2019 with the support of the NCP and the Congress.

See also: Shiv Sena and more election news.

Originally published on 5 November 2019. Rewritten on 9 October 2026.

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