All the 288 newly-elected legislators of different political parties including ex-deputy chief minister and NCP leader Ajit Pawar and Independents on Wednesday took oath at a special Assembly session called by Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari after the Supreme Court’s Tuesday order for the same ahead of the floor test today.

Nationalist Congress Party leader Ajit Pawar, who resigned as the deputy CM, was welcomed with a hug by cousin Supriya Sule as he arrived for the swearing-in ceremony.

Earlier in the day, Ajit Pawar had said: “There is no question of return, I am with the NCP and have been with the NCP.”

In the House, Pro Tem Speaker Kalidas Kolambkar announced that Babanrao Pachpute, Vijaykumar Gavit and Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil as the presiding officers for administering oath of the members.

Presiding officers Babanrao Pachpute and Vijaykumar Gavit were the first to take oath followed by caretaker chief minister Devendra Fadnavis.

Hours after Ajit Pawar resigned on Tuesday, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis too followed suit after it was reportedly decided by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Party President Amit Shah and party Executive President JP Nadda in a meeting.

Fadnavis also termed the formation of Maha Vikas Aghadi, alliance of Shiv Sena-NCP-Congress, as the desperation of power with the agenda of ‘BJP Hatao’ (remove BJP).

Meanwhile, the Maha Vikas Aghadi alliance has elected Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray as its leader and Chief Minister candidate in Maharashtra.

In a meeting of the newly formed alliance comprising of Shiv Sena-NCP-Congress, a resolution was passed and accepted unanimously by all MLAs present in the meeting held at Hotel Trident in Mumbai.

According to senior NCP leader and Rajya Sabha MP Majeed Memon, NCP’s Jayant Patil and Congress’ Balasaheb Thorat will be the Deputy Chief Ministers in the Maha Vikas Aghadi-led government in Maharashtra.

Both the Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister took oath in the wee hours of Saturday morning, a move that took everyone by surprise. The move was challenged by the opposition in Supreme Court which in its judgment on Tuesday morning ordered a floor test on Wednesday.