After months of internecine bickering and fights between BJP and Shiv Sena , the Fadnavis government on Friday expanded the Maharashtra ministry with 10 new ministers and elevation of one new minister to the level of Cabinet rank.

Of the 10 new ministers, six ministers are from BJP, two from Shiv Sena and rest from regional parties.

Shiv Sena, which is the alliance partner in the State Government, has been keen to expand its clout in the ministry but Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis was unrelenting and only offered two berths to the party. Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray did not attend the swearing-in ceremony, which was held at the Legislative Assembly.

Ram Shinde elevated

Ram Shinde was among the six legislators sworn-in as Cabinet ministers. He was earlier Minister of State for Home (rural).

Sena MLAs Arjun Khotkar , from Jalna in Marathwada region, and Gulabrao Patil , from Jalgaon in north Maharashtra, were inducted in the ministry as junior ministers. Patil hails from former BJP minister Eknath Khadse’s home turf Jalgaon, while Khotkar belongs to Jalna, the native district of state BJP president Raosaheb Danve.

BJP’s pre-poll alliance partners Swabhimani Party and Rashtriya Samaj Party (RSP) also found berth with the swearing-in of Sadabhau Khot and Mahadev Jankar , respectively. Jankar took oath as Cabinet minister.

The BJP legislators sworn-in as Cabinet ministers include former state party president Pandurang Fundkar, Dondaicha (Dhule) MLA Jaykumar Rawal, Sambhaji Patil Nilangekar from Nilanga and Solapur MLA Subhash Deshmukh .

BJP legislators Ravindra Chavan and Madan Yerawar were sworn in as Ministers of State.

(With additional inputs from PTI)

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