08 April,2025 03:34 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
CM Fadnavis (above) said that there was no question of discussing a successor. File Pic
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will continue to lead the country even beyond 2029, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said on Tuesday, reported the PTI.
CM Fadnavis said that there was no question of discussing a successor.
The Maharashtra CM's assertion comes in response to the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut's claim last month that PM Modi had visited Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) headquarters in Maharashtra's Nagpur to convey the message that he was 'retiring'.
According to the PTI, when asked about his earlier comments made in Nagpur about Modi's successor, CM Fadnavis on Tuesday said, "I have said that it is not the right time to think of a successor to Modi, because, in 2029, Prime Minister Modi will be prime minister again".
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He was speaking at the India Global Forum in Mumbai.
Sanjay Raut had claimed that PM Modi probably went to the RSS headquarters on March 30 to "write his retirement application in September," alluding to some leaders in the BJP retiring at 75, as per the PTI.
The Prime Minister was joined by RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, and other prominent leaders during his visit last month.
PM Modi, who is in his third term as PM, turns 75 in September this year.
"It appears that PM Modi's heir will be decided by the RSS which is why Modi was called (to the RSS headquarters) and discussions took place. Sangh's discussions are held behind closed doors. The indications are very clear. The Sangh will decide the next leader and that leader could be from Maharashtra," Sanjay Raut had earlier claimed, the news agency reported.
CM Fadnavis had rejected Sanjay Raut's claim, saying, "In our culture, when the father is alive, it is inappropriate to talk about succession. That is Mughal culture. The time has not come to discuss it", as per the PTI.
Sanjay Raut had last month claimed that the RSS will be responsible for selecting Prime Minister Narendra Modi's successor. He further asserted that the next leader would hail from Maharashtra.
Senior RSS leader Suresh Bhaiyyaji' Joshi had said that he was unaware of any talk of (PM's) replacement.
(with PTI inputs)
