Pune: State agriculture minister and senior NCP member Dattatray Bharne on Wednesday said chief minister Devendra Fadnavis should get an opportunity to become the Prime Minister.Bharne made the statement amid speculations that Fadnavis may be elevated to the centre soon.Opposition members like Shiv Sena (UBT) Rajya Sabha member Sanjay Raut have publicly said the Maharashtra CM could move to national politics ahead of the 2029 elections.Factually, no politician from Maharashtra has ever been an Indian PM. “The post has remained elusive for politicians of Maharashtra. Stalwarts like Yashwantrao Chavan and Sharad Pawar could also not occupy the seat. It is a strong wish of the common people of the state that Fadnavis lead the country,” Bharne told reporters in Pune.The minister praised Fadnavis and said, “There is no doubt that Maharashtra needs capable politicians, but we should not be narrow minded to think only about the state. It is the right time to seek Lord Pandurang’s blessings for Fadnavis so that he becomes the first from Maharashtra to lead the country in 2029 or 2034.”Earlier, Raut had said revenue minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule could be the next CM if Fadnavis moved to the centre.Bharne said he would be happy to see NCP chief and deputy CM Sunetra Pawar as the chief minister. “It is too early to predict anything right now, but I will be very happy if Sunetra vahini gets the opportunity to become the first woman chief minister of the state,” he added.State includes Ajit Pawar’s birth anniversary in official commemorative calendarThe state govt on Wednesday officially included Ajit Pawar’s birth anniversary on July 22 in Maharashtra’s official commemorative calendar. The move followed a letter by NCP seniors Chhagan Bhujbal and Hasan Mushrif to Fadnavis. The general administration department of the state govt issued a notification mentioning that Ajit Pawar’s birth anniversary would now be celebrated across the state and would include floral tributes to his portrait at the Mantralaya as well as all govt and semi-govt offices.
