Mumbai: Eknath Shinde-led Maharashtra Government won the majority by getting 164 votes in favour during the trust vote in the Assembly on Monday crossing the majority mark of 144 votes.
During the trust vote, 164 votes were polled in favour of Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, while 99 votes were polled against the newly formed BJP-Shinde camp coalition.
The development comes after a high-voltage political crisis in the state where a new government led by rebel Shiv Sena MLA Shinde came to power toppling the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) regime.
The five-day old Shiv Sena-BJP government sailed past the floor test on Monday during the special two-day session of the Legislative Assembly that began on Sunday. The trust vote comes a day after BJP’s Rahul Narwekar was elected the Assembly Speaker with a majority of 164 votes in the 287-member House.
Meanwhile, Narwekar reinstated Chief Minister Eknath Shinde as Shiv Sena Legislature Party Leader, removing Ajay Chaudhary. Narwekar also recognised the appointment of Bharat Gogawale from the Shinde camp as the chief whip of the Sena, removing Sunil Prabhu, who belongs to the Thackeray faction. The development comes as a major setback to the Thackeray faction comprising 16 MLAs who will be bound by the whip to be issued by Gogawale for the trust vote.
In the trust vote held on Monday, Shiv Sena MLA Santosh Bangar voted in favour of the coalition formed by BJP and the Shiv Sena camp led by CM Eknath Shinde.
