Assembly seats in kitty, MLAs now eye cabinet

Among others who may make it to the state cabinet are former minister Dilip Kamble and second-time legislator Madhuri Misal.

BJP worker Subhash Bhambure said Bapat and Kamble deserved to be ministers in the new government on the basis of their experience. “Bapat has been chairperson of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) and should be given the finance and revenue ministries, while Kamble, who was minister for social justice, should get the department once again,” he added.

“The decision on who would be made ministers will be taken by the party leadership. I have been a five-time legislator from the city and would continue to serve the people who have shown confidence in me,” said Girish Bapat, re-elected to the Assembly from Kasba Peth.

Dilip Kamble provides the BJP with an option to include a face from the reserved category seats. His induction in the cabinet will also consolidate the party’s position in the city that has a large number of minority votes.

The city also has a woman legislator, Madhuri Misal, who has won the Assembly elections for two consecutive terms. Misal shares good relations with all party leaders and is considered close to Pankaja Munde-Palwe. “I have got more votes in Parvati than the party MP got from the same area during the Lok Sabha elections,” Misal said after the results were announced.

The hopes of the city featuring in the state cabinet has increased after a gap of four years, when Ramesh Bagwe was made minister of state in 2009 under the leadership of Ashok Chavan. However, he could not retain his place in the cabinet under the leadership of Prithviraj Chavan. Bagwe was included in the state ministry after the city Congress unit complained of ignoring the city by not including any legislator in the cabinet.