'Unwell' Shinde visits hospital for check-up

Mumbai: Maharashtra's caretaker Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Tuesday visited a private hospital in Thane for a "check-up," two days before a new CM is sworn in at an open ground ceremony in south Mumbai. Even as it is not known yet who would take oath as chief minister at Azad Maidan on the evening of December 5, preparations are in full swing for the ceremony, to be attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, about 2,000 VVIPs and some 40,000 supporters.

Shinde, who had been staying at his private residence in Thane for the last few days, visited the hospital in the morning. "I came for a check-up. My health is in good condition," he told reporters while leaving the hospital for `Varsha', the CM's official residence in Mumbai.

A doctor said Shinde had throat issues. "The CM had a fever and infection, which caused weakness. He also underwent an MRI scan as a precautionary measure," he said.

Shinde, whose party, Shiv Sena, is a constituent of the BJP-led Mahayuti coalition, has been unwell for the last few days. His decision to head to his village in Satara district last Friday had sparked speculation that he was unhappy over the way the new government was shaping up.

Hours after Shinde returned from the hospital, BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis, being seen as the frontrunner for the top post in the new BJP-Shiv Sena-NCP government, visited Shinde's official residence `Varsha' here in the evening. It was the first face-to-face meeting between the two leaders after the duo, along with NCP chief Ajit Pawar, met the top BJP leadership in Delhi last week.

Following Mahayuti's landslide victory in the November 20 elections, the new Maharashtra government is slated to be sworn in on Thursday with BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis, a two-time former chief minister, being touted as the frontrunner for the top post.

Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut claimed that Shinde was "sulking and throwing tantrums" at Fadnavis with the backing of the "superpower in Delhi", an apparent reference to the BJP's top brass.