Nagpur: Ram Shinde, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislator and a former minister, was unanimously elected as the new chairman of the Maharashtra legislative council on Thursday.

The position had been vacant since July 7, 2022, after the term of Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Ramraje Naik-Nimbalkar ended.

Shinde, a first-time member of the legislative council (MLC), was the sole candidate to file his nomination for the position on Wednesday, making his election a formality.

The proposal for Shinde’s chairmanship was introduced by BJP’s Shrikant Bhartiya and supported by Manisha Kayande (Shiv Sena), Amol Mitkari (NCP), and Dnyaneshwar Mhatre (BJP). Following this, Shinde was elected unanimously through a voice vote.

Deputy chairman of the legislative council, Neelam Gorhe, who has been presiding over the upper house since 2022, officially announced Shinde’s election in the House.

Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis expressed gratitude to the House for the unanimous decision, saying, “This year marks the 300th birth anniversary of Ahilyadevi, and Ram Shinde is from the ninth generation of Ahilyadevi’s father’s family. In a way, we have paid a perfect tribute to her.”

Gorhe also wished Shinde success in his new role, stating, “I will continue to work for society.”

Also Read: Ram Shinde vs Rohit Pawar showdown likely in Karjat-Jamkhed constituency

Shinde, a college professor, previously won elections from the Karjat Jamkhed assembly constituency in 2009 and 2014. He served as Maharashtra’s minister of state starting in December 2014, overseeing portfolios including home, public health, agriculture, horticulture, marketing, and tourism.

In a cabinet expansion on July 8, 2016, he was promoted to cabinet rank and appointed as the minister for water conservation. However, Shinde lost the Karjat Jamkhed assembly seat in the 2019 and 2024 elections to Rohit Pawar of the NCP (SP).