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ShareMumbai: Ashok Chavan, who was sworn in as Maharashtra chief minister today, faces a sterner test of his leadership and managing skills through the choppy waters of coalition politics after just over 10 months at the helm of affairs in the state in the previous stint.
Chavan's non-controversial image may have landed him the top job after Vilasrao Deshmukh made way in the wake of Mumbai terror attack, but his real test would lie in managing the coalition which took 15 days of hard bargaining between
Congress and NCP over portfolios and the number of ministeries.
The excellent equations 51-year-old Chavan enjoys with Congress command, specially with Gen Next leader Rahul Gandhi, also helped in no small measure in warding off potential challenges from more seasoned seasoned aspirants Vilasrao Deshmukh and Narayan Rane, both former chief ministers.
The selection of Chavan also underlines the importance of political inheritance in Congress. He inherited the poitical legacy of his late father SB Chavan, becoming the first father-son duo in the state's history to adorn the chief ministerial chair. The senior Chavan was a loyalist of the Nehru-Gandhi family.
Hailing from Marathwada, the region to which Vilasrao Deshmukh belongs, Ashok Chavan rode piggyback on his father's political clout and began his political career in 1987 when he was elected to the Lok Sabha from Nanded.
In 1999, he was elected to the assembly from Mudkhed and was made cabinet minister for Revenue and Protocol. He held a variety of portfolios including Transport, Ports, Cultural Affairs, Industries and Mining before being elevated to the chief ministerial chair last year when Vilasrao Deshmukh, a protege of S B Chavan, had to step down in the aftermath of the 26/11 terror attack.
Chavan was also general secretary of Maharashtra PCC from 1995 to 1999. During his 10-month stint as CM, Chavan claims to have expedited projects worth Rs50,000 crore to make Mumbai a world class city. Projects awaiting further action include the ambitious Dharavi redevelopment Project, the Bandra-Worli Rajiv Gandhi sea-link extension to Haji Ali and redevelopment of the state secretariat.
The low-profile leader might have managed to make the cut edging past veterans like Deshmukh and Sushilkumar Shinde, besides Rane, his longevity in the chair would depend as much on his ability to manage coalition partner NCP as his equations with the seniors in his own party.
