BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis offered to resign as Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister, taking responsibility for the party's disastrous showing in the Lok Sabha elections.
The former Chief Minister requested the BJP leadership to relieve him of his duties so that he could focus on strengthening the party ahead of the Maharashtra Assembly polls scheduled later this year.
Addressing a media briefing, Fadnavis said, "I take responsibility for such results in Maharashtra. I was leading the party. I am requesting the BJP high command to relieve me from the responsibility of the government so that I can work hard for the party in the upcoming elections."
Fadnavis said the BJP leadership should give him time to focus on the party ahead of the Assembly polls later in November.
Earlier in the day, the BJP unit in Maharashtra held a meeting to analyse the party's poor performance. The meeting was attended by Devendra Fadnavis and the BJP's state unit chief Chandrashekhar Bawankule and other senior leaders.
The BJP-led NDA fell significantly short of its target of bagging 45 seats in Maharashtra.
The BJP managed to win just nine Lok Sabha seats in the state. The party's tally dwindled by 14 as compared to the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. Together with its allies, the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena and Ajit Pawar-led NCP, the NDA won 17 seats of the 48 seats.
In the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, the BJP won 23 seats in Maharashtra.
On the other hand, the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) punched above its weight to bag 30 seats. While the Congress won 13 seats, a massive jump from the solitary seat it won in the state in 2019, the Shiv Sena (UBT) won nine and NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar) got eight seats.
