Know all about Rahul Narwekar, the new Maharashtra Assembly Speaker

New Delhi: Rahul Narwekar, first-time BJP legislator, has been elected as the new Maharashtra Assembly Speaker on Sunday (July 3, 2022). Narwekar, who received 164 votes during the special two-day session of the Legislative Assembly which began on Sunday at 11 am, defeated Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena candidate Rajan Salvi who could only poll 107 votes. He became the youngest-ever Assembly Speaker in the country at the age of 45.

The post of Assembly Speaker was vacant since Congress' Nana Patole resigned in February 2021 to become his party's state unit president. Deputy Speaker Narhari Zirwal was officiating as acting Speaker in the meantime.

Here are some things you should know about Rahul Narwekar:

1. He is a sitting MLA from Colaba Assembly constituency in Mumbai. Narwekar is the son-in-law of NCP leader Ramraje Nimbalkar, who is chairman of the Maharashtra Legislative Council. His father Suresh Narwekar was a Municipal Councillor from Colaba, Mumbai.
2. It's interesting to note that he was associated to the Nationalist Congress Party and Shiv Sena earlier. This was before he joined BJP in 2019.
3. His political career built during his days in the Shiv Sena, starting from the party's youth wing, Yuva Sena. He lef the Shiv Sena in 2014.
4. Narwekar left Shiv Sena after the party due to the inaccessibility of party top brass which could be referring to Uddhav Thackeray.
5. After his stint in Shiv Sena, he joined the NCP and contested the Lok Sabha election but lost from the Maval constituency to Shrirang Appa Barne of the Shiv Sena
6. He joined the BJP before the 2019 Maharashtra Assembly polls from Colaba. He won the Colaba Assembly seat, defeating Congress' Ashok Jagtap.

Narwekar has been elected as the speaker a day ahead of the four-day-old Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena-BJP government facing a floor test on July 4.

(With agency inputs)

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