Mumbai, June 30 (IANS) Maharashtra unit BJP working president and former minister Ravindra Chavan is set to take over as the next president of the state unit from the incumbent Chandrashekhar Bawankule on Tuesday.

The state BJP executive meeting will be held on Tuesday where Ravindra Chavan will formally take his charge. He is the sole candidate who has filed his nomination papers on Monday for the post of state BJP chief.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, state unit chief and revenue minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule, election supervisor and Union Minister Kiren Rijiju, National General Secretary and State in-charge MLA Arun Singh, Election Officer MLA Chainsukh Sancheti were present among others when Ravindra Chavan on Monday filed his nomination papers.

“Ravindra Chavan, who started his political journey as an ordinary worker of the Yuva Morcha, will fulfill the responsibility of the state president with strength as he has a vast experience in the organisational work,” said CM Fadnavis.

The Chief Minister said: “Chandrashekhar Bawankule has fulfilled the responsibility of the state president very competently in the last 3 years. It was due to the organisation building done by Bawankule that the party got a big success in the Assembly elections.”

“After the process of registration of members of the Bharatiya Janata Party under the organization, the election process of 80 organisational district presidents of the party was completed. After that, the elections of mandal presidents were held. The programme for the election of state president, national council and state council members was announced on June 28. Accordingly, the process of filing applications for the post of state president was completed on June 30,” said the BJP in the release.

Ravindra Chavan’s appointment comes when BJP is gearing up for the upcoming local and civic body elections in Maharashtra. CM Fadnavis along with Chavan and host of party leaders have expressed that BJP with allies Shiv Sena and NCP will continue the victory march in the ensuing local and civic body elections following the stellar performance of MahaYuti in the state assembly elections held last year.

Fadnavis, Mumbai BJP chief Ashish Shelar and other party leaders have repeatedly announced that BJP led MahaYuti is resolved to hoist saffron flag atop the BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation defeating the Uddhav Thackeray led Shiv Sena.

–IANS

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