Mumbai: The state finance department is back in focus amid the hectic parleys that are going on behind the scenes in the state. First it was the Sunetra Pawar-led NCP which publicly said it had not given up its claim on the finance department. Till January this year, the crucial department in the state government was headed by Ajit Pawar. Following his death, his post was claimed by Sunetra Pawar but chief minister Devendra Fadnavis kept the department to himself as the annual state budget was being prepared and he could not risk giving it to a political newbie.
As the NCP (SP) began tapping the possibility of joining the NDA at the Centre and in the state, one of the top items on its wishlist was this coveted department. The party also has one of the best candidates for the job—Jayant Patil--who was the state finance minister for almost a decade in successive Congress-NCP governments. The buzz that Patil is returning as finance minister got stronger after he had closed-door meetings with chief minister Fadnavis and later deputy chief minister Eknath Shinde last week, much to the alarm of Sunetra Pawar and son Parth. Patil in charge of finance could be dangerous for the mother-son duo, who are strongly opposed to the merger, as the finance minister controls the government’s purse and is therefore in a position to influence MLAs.
