Rahul Narwekar becomes Maharashtra Speaker outwitting rival candidate
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Mumbai: Rahul Narwekar of the BJP became the new Speaker for Maharashtra's assembly on Sunday.
The BJP lawmaker earned 164 votes in the election held in the House after the proceedings started at 11 am.
Narwekar defeated the rival candidate Rajan Salvi of Shiv Sena, who is a close aide of Uddhav Thackeray and won 107 votes.
Salvi is fielded by Shiv Sena,NCP-Congress combine which lost power after a group of Shiv Sena lawmakers deserted chief minister Uddhav Thackeray.
The newly sworn in Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis were among those cast their votes, according to India Today.
The Samajwadi Party (SP) and AIMIM MLAs abstained from voting, while SP lawmakers Abu Azmi and Raees Shaikh sat through the head count.
The Speaker's chair remained vacant after Nana Patole of Congress quit February last year. However, the procedures are not over yet as the Shinde government will have to prove its majority via floor-test on Monday.
In the 288-member House, the BJP has 106 lawmakers while Shiv Sena has 55, NCP 53, Congress 44, and smaller parties each has a couple of seats.
After a group of Shiv Sena lawmakers led by Eknath Shinde deserted Uddhav Thackeray administration, plunging the state in crisis, on Wednesday Uddav Thackeray resigned. Only a day before, the Supreme Court asked him to take a floor test to prove majority.
