The much-delayed cabinet expansion of Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis-led Maharashtra government is likely to take place on Tuesday morning.Shinde gave indications to the effect in Nanded where he is on a tour on Monday, saying that "you will come to know soon" and the names of the ministers shall be finalised by latter this night or Tuesday.
More ministers may be inducted Tuesday - a day ahead of the Monsoon Session of Maharashtra Legislature which is expected to start from Wednesday.Shinde and Fadnavis took oath on June 30 - a day after the erstwhile Maha Vikas Aghadi regime headed by Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray crashed - and they have been running a two-man government for the past 40 days.
The duo had a meeting on the issue on Monday - a couple of days after they had gone to New Delhi to meet the Bharatiya Janata Party top leaders - to finalise the thorny cabinet expansion issue.The Shinde-Fadnavis government has been under severe attack from the Leader of Opposition Ajit Pawar, the Nationalist Congress Party, Congress and Shiv Sena leaders for the delay in forming the cabinet due to which the state administration has been paralysed.