Mumbai: Chhagan Bhujbal, who was recently sworn in as a minister from the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), has been given charge of the Food and Civil Supplies Department. The portfolio, which he has previously held in the Eknath Shinde government, had been assigned to Dhananjay Munde who resigned following his alleged involvement in the Santosh Deshmukh murder case. Since then, there had been speculation that the portfolio would return to Bhujbal. That has now been confirmed with an official notification issued on Friday.
After being handed the portfolio, senior NCP (Ajit Pawar faction) leader Chhagan Bhujbal addressed the media, reflecting on his long political journey. “I’ve entered and exited the cabinet nine to ten times. I’ve taken charge of departments and stepped down just as often,” he said. Expressing satisfaction over the latest development, Bhujbal noted, “I’m happy. This is the third time I’ve been given the Food and Civil Supplies Department. I held it while working with Sharad Pawar, again during the Maha Vikas Aghadi government, and now, after joining the Mahayuti alliance, it has come back to me despite not having a ministerial post initially in this government.”
Bhujbal hit back at critics questioning his political alignment. “Those who criticise me should know I am not a BJP minister. I am a minister from Ajit Pawar’s NCP. It is the NCP that decides whether I should be in the cabinet or not. The chief minister only implements those decisions,” Bhujbal asserted. He further revealed that during the government formation, Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis had tried to bring him into the cabinet.
“Not just him, even Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah had made efforts in Delhi to ensure I became a minister. But the party took a different decision at the time, and I couldn’t be inducted,” he added.
About The Induction
Chhagan Bhujbal’s recent induction into the state cabinet is being viewed in the backdrop of the Supreme Court’s directive to conduct local body elections within four months. When Bhujbal was left out of the cabinet he had publicly expressed his displeasure and even issued statements against Deputy CM Ajit Pawar. He also met Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who had reportedly asked him to remain patient and assured that responsibilities would be given at the right time. With the local elections on the horizon political observers believe that Bhujbal’s return is aimed at consolidating OBC support, which could be crucial for the ruling alliance.
Sources suggest that the government did not want to alienate the OBC community, and Bhujbal’s inclusion is being seen as a move to strengthen the Mahayuti’s social and electoral balance. Chhagan Bhujbal’s return to the state cabinet has triggered sharp criticism from the opposition, which has reignited past corruption allegations and shared old statements by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis to corner both the BJP and Bhujbal.
The opposition questioned how a leader once targeted for graft has now been reinstated with a key portfolio. Hitting back at the allegations, Bhujbal stated that the corruption case against him was resolved long before his current association with the ruling alliance. “The verdict in my case came when I was part of the Maha Vikas Aghadi government led by Uddhav Thackeray, not while I was with the BJP,” he said. “An 80-page judgment was delivered, and the case was closed. I and the others involved were declared innocent,” he added, dismissing the charges as politically motivated.
