Devendra Fadnavis: The comeback man

Mumbai: Whether it is Chanakya or Abhimanyu, 54-year-old Devendra Fadnavis - an astute politician with ears to the ground and eyes on the horizon - has earned several sobriquets and carved a niche for himself not only in Maharashtra politics but also the national scene.

An excellent orator, Fadnavis has the image of being 'Mr Clean', and face of the proverbial 'Common Man'.

His anointment as the Maharashtra Chief Minister, the third time for him, has proven that Devendra ji or 'Deva Bhau', as he is popularly known, is a man of comebacks.

He is the second Brahmin CM in Maharashtra politics.

What is more important is that he is at ease in all situations - be it speaking to grassroot workers, blue-collar executives or farmers, or handling an angry morcha or negotiating with allies and keeping the Opposition in good humour.

In fact, way back in 2014, after the BJP came to power at the Centre, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his aide - now Union Home Minister Amit Shah, made it very clear who calls the shots in Maharashtra.

A six-time MLA, Fadnavis, who is very close to the RSS leadership, was then the Maharashtra BJP president and steered the party in the 2014 Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha polls.

Modi had said "desh me Narendra, pradesh me Devendra", while Shah had described him as the "current and future" CM of Maharashtra.

There are several catchphrases that revolve around him.

'Mi punha yein'

The most famous being "mi punha yein’ (I will be back!) - when he addressed back-to-back rallies ahead of the 2019 polls as the CM.

However, his dream to return as CM failed when the undivided Shiv Sena led by Uddhav Thackeray broke the alliance with BJP and later efforts to form a government with NCP’s Ajit Pawar failed.

However, Fadnavis extracted revenge by toppling the Thackeray-dispensation and breaking the Shiv Sena in June-July 2022 and making Eknath Shinde the CM. While he was asked to be Deputy CM by BJP’s high-command, in a year’s time he broke the Sharad Pawar-headed NCP and made Ajit Pawar a Deputy CM.

'Main samandar hu, laut kar wapas aaunga'

His statement “main samandar hu, laut kar wapas aaunga” (I am a sea, I will surely return) became popular.

Ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, when asked about his 'me punha yein’ statement, he said: ".. yes… I have come back after breaking two parties” - a reference to the splits of Shiv Sena and NCP.

After BJP and Maha Yuti’s landslide victory in the 2024 Maharashtra Legislative Assembly polls, he gave an answer to an earlier criticism - "ek akela Devendra kya karega” - often asked by Maha Vikas Aghadi leaders.

After the debacle in the Lok Sabha polls, he desired to resign as Deputy CM but the BJP high-command rejected it.

Humble background

Fadnavis hails from a humble middle-class family. A second-generation politician, his father, late Gangadharrao Fadnavis was an MLC from Nagpur and his mother, Sarita Fadnavis, was the Director of the Vidarbha Housing Credit Society. Fadnavis' father, a committed RSS worker, had worked with late Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and former Deputy Chief Minister Lal Krishna Advani.

Emergency

During the Emergency, when his father Gangadharrao Fadnavis was jailed for opposing the government, Fadnavis refused to continue his schooling at Indira Convent as it was named after the former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. He then enrolled at Saraswati Vidyalaya in Nagpur. He graduated in law and has also studied business management.

Highly educated

Born on 22nd July, 1970, Fadnavis holds a Graduate Degree in Law from Nagpur University, a Post Graduate Degree in Business Management and a Diploma in Methods and Techniques of Project Management from D.S.E. Berlin.

He started off as an elected member of the Municipal Corporation of Nagpur for two consecutive terms, in 1992 and 1997. He has the distinction of being the second youngest Mayor ever in India, when he served as the Mayor of Nagpur.

Fadanvis's wife Amruta works with the Axis Bank and they have a daughter named Divija. He is a foodie, loves music and films, and keenly follows sports, current affairs and international affairs.