Balasaheb Thorat

Balasaheb Thorat
Balasaheb Thorat
Leader of Congress Legislature Party ; Maharashtra Legislature
	Incumbent
	Assumed office ; 24 November 2019
National President Indian National Congress	Sonia Gandhi; Mallikarjun Kharge;
Preceded by	Prithviraj Chavan
Leader of the Opposition ; Maharashtra Legislative Assembly
	Additional Charge
	In office; 18 July 2023 – 3 August 2023
Governor	Ramesh Bais;
Deputy	Himself;
Chief Minister	Eknath Shinde;
Dy Chief Minister	Devendra Fadnavis (First); Ajit Pawar (Second);
Speaker of the House	Rahul Narwekar;
Preceded by	Ajit Pawar; Jitendra Awhad (Acting);
Succeeded by	Vijay Namdevrao Wadettiwar;
Deputy Leader of the Opposition ; (Maharashtra Legislative Assembly)
	In office; 4 July 2022 – 3 August 2023
Governor	Bhagat Singh Koshyari; Ramesh Bais;
Chief Minister	Eknath Shinde;
Dy Chief Minister	Devendra Fadnavis (First); Ajit Pawar (From 02 July 2023) (Second);
Leader of the Opposition	Ajit Pawar; Jitendra Awhad (Acting); Himself (Additional Charge);
Speaker of the House	Rahul Narwekar;
Preceded by	Sudhir Mungantiwar;
Succeeded by	Jitendra Awhad (NCP); Ajay Choudhari (SHS(UTB));
Member of Maharashtra Legislative Assembly
	In office; 1985 – 26 November 2024
Preceded by	B. J. Khatal-Patil
Succeeded by	Amol Khatal
Parliamentary group	Indian National Congress
Constituency	Sangamner
Cabinet Minister ; Government of Maharashtra
	In office; 30 December 2019 – 29 June 2022
Minister	Revenue;
Governor	Bhagat Singh Koshyari;
Cabinet	Thackeray ministry
Chief Minister	Uddhav Thackeray
Dy Chief Minister	Ajit Pawar
Guardian Minister	Dhule District Additional Charge;
Preceded by	Himself (Acting);
Succeeded by	Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil
	Incharge
	In office; 28 November 2019 – 30 December 2019
Minister	Revenue; Energy; Medical Education; School Education; Animal Husbandry; Dairy Development; Fisheries Department;
Governor	Bhagat Singh Koshyari;
Cabinet	Thackeray ministry
Chief Minister	Uddhav Thackeray
Preceded by	Chandrakant Patil ; (Revenue Ministry); Chandrashekhar Bawankule ; (Energy Ministry); Girish Mahajan ; (Medical Education Ministry); Ashish Shelar ; (School Education Ministry); Ram Shinde ; (Animal Husbandry Ministry); Ram Shinde ; (Dairy Development Ministry); Anil Sukhdevrao Bonde ; (Fisheries Department Ministry);
Succeeded by	Himself ; (Revenue Ministry); Nitin Raut ; (Energy Ministry); Amit Deshmukh ; (Medical Education Ministry); Varsha Gaikwad ; (School Education Ministry); Sunil Chhatrapal Kedar ; (Animal Husbandry Ministry); Sunil Chhatrapal Kedar ; (Dairy Development Ministry); Aslam Shaikh ; (Fisheries Department Ministry);
President of Maharashtra ; Pradesh Congress Committee
	In office; 7 July 2019 – 5 February 2021
National President Indian National Congress	Sonia Gandhi
Preceded by	Ashok Chavan
Succeeded by	Nana Patole
Secretary of Maha Vikas Aghadi
	Incumbent
	Assumed office ; 26 November 2019
President	Uddhav Thackeray
Chairperson	Sharad Pawar
Preceded by	Position established
Cabinet Minister ; Government of Maharashtra
	In office; 11 November 2010 – 26 September 2014
Minister	Revenue; Vimukta Jati; Food, Civil Supplies; Consumer Affairs; State Border Defence (First);
Governor	Kateekal Sankaranarayanan; Om Prakash Kohli (additional charge); C. Vidyasagar Rao;
Cabinet	Prithviraj Chavan ministry
Chief Minister	Prithviraj Chavan
Dy Chief Minister	Ajit Pawar
Guardian Minister	Ahmednagar District; Buldhana District; Nagpur District;
Preceded by	Narayan Rane ; (Revenue Ministry); Radhakrishna Vikhe-Patil ; (Vimukta Jati Ministry); Anil Deshmukh ; (Food, Civil Supplies Ministry); Anil Deshmukh ; (Consumer Protection Ministry); Patangrao Kadam ; (State Border Defence Ministry);
Succeeded by	Eknath Khadse ; (Revenue Ministry); Mahadev Jankar ; (Vimukta Jati Ministry); Girish Bapat ; (Food, Civil Supplies Ministry); Girish Bapat ; (Consumer Protection Ministry); Eknath Khadse ; (State Border Defence Ministry);
	In office; 7 November 2009 – 9 November 2010
Minister	Agriculture; Soil and Water Conservation; School Education; Marathi Language;
Governor	S. C. Jamir; K. Sankaranarayanan;
Cabinet	Second Ashok Chavan ministry
Chief Minister	Ashok Chavan
Dy Chief Minister	Chhagan Bhujbal
Guardian Minister	Ahmednagar District; Kolhapur District; Latur District;
Preceded by	Himself ; (Agriculture Ministry); Himself ; (Soil and Water Conservation Ministry); Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil ; (School Education Ministry); Vijaykumar Krishnarao Gavit ; (Marathi Language Ministry);
Succeeded by	Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil ; (Agriculture Ministry); Ramraje Naik Nimbalkar ; (Soil and Water Conservation Ministry); Rajendra Darda ; (School Education Ministry); Radhakrishna Vikhe-Patil ; (Marathi Language Ministry);
	In office; 8 December 2008 – 6 November 2009
Minister	Agriculture; Protocol; Soil and Water Conservation;
Governor	S. C. Jamir;
Cabinet	First Ashok Chavan ministry
Chief Minister	Ashok Chavan
Dy Chief Minister	Chhagan Bhujbal
Preceded by	Himself ; (Agriculture Ministry); Himself ; (Protocol Ministry); Surupsingh Hirya Naik ; (Soil and Water Conservation Ministry);
Succeeded by	Himself ; (Agriculture Ministry); Ashok Chavan CM; (Protocol Ministry); Himself ; (Soil and Water Conservation Ministry);
	In office; 1 November 2004 – 4 December 2008
Minister	Agriculture; Protocol;
Cabinet	Second Deshmukh ministry
Chief Minister	Vilasrao Deshmukh
Dy Chief Minister	R. R. Patil
Preceded by	Sushilkumar Shinde CM; (Agriculture Ministry); Ashok Chavan ; (Protocol Ministry);
Succeeded by	Himself ; (Agriculture Ministry); Himself ; (Protocol Ministry);
Minister of State ; Government of Maharashtra
	In office; 18 January 2003 – 4 November 2004
Minister	Agriculture; Horticulture; Socially and Educationally Backward Classes;
Cabinet	Sushilkumar Shinde ministry
Chief Minister	Sushilkumar Shinde
Dy Chief Minister	Chhagan Bhujbal (2003); Vijaysingh Mohite-Patil (2003-04);
	In office; 18 October 1999 – 16 January 2003
Minister	Public Works (Including Public Undertakings); Command Area Development; Information Technology;
Cabinet	First Deshmukh ministry
Chief Minister	Vilasrao Deshmukh
Dy Chief Minister	Chhagan Bhujbal
Personal details
Born	Vijay Bhausaheb Thorat; 7 February 1953
Nationality	Indian
Political party	Indian National Congress
Other political; affiliations	Independent
Children	3 daughters & 1 son
Residence(s)	Jorve, Taluka Sangamner, District Ahmednagar, Tapalcha Patta, Sudarshan, 7 Shivjinagar, Sangamner--422605
Education	Fergusson College B.A, ILS Law College, Pune L.L.B
Nickname	Vijay

Vijay Bhausaheb Thorat (Marathi pronunciation: [baːɭaːsaːɦeb t̪ʰoɾaːt̪], born 7 February 1953), known popularly as Balasaheb Thorat, is an Indian politician who served as the revenue minister in Maharashtra state. He also served as the Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly. Thorat is a senior member of the Congress Party. He was an MLA from Sangamner constituency.

Thorat is a key figure in the cooperative movement and is the founder of a milk co-operative and former president of the Sangamner District and State Cooperative Bank.

He is recognised for his work in Sangamner taluka and Akole taluka. He has founded cooperative educational institutions in Sangamner. He is currently (as of July 2024) President of Amrutvahini College of Engineering. Previously, he served as Minister of Agriculture and as Minister of Revenue, and Khar Lands in the Government of Maharashtra.

Balasaheb Thorat

Leader of Congress Legislature Party Maharashtra Legislature
Incumbent
Assumed office 24 November 2019
National President Indian National Congress	Sonia Gandhi Mallikarjun Kharge
Preceded by	Prithviraj Chavan
Leader of the Opposition Maharashtra Legislative Assembly
Additional Charge
In office 18 July 2023 – 3 August 2023
Governor	Ramesh Bais
Deputy	Himself
Chief Minister	Eknath Shinde
Dy Chief Minister	Devendra Fadnavis (First) Ajit Pawar (Second)
Speaker of the House	Rahul Narwekar
Preceded by	Ajit Pawar Jitendra Awhad (Acting)
Succeeded by	Vijay Namdevrao Wadettiwar
Deputy Leader of the Opposition (Maharashtra Legislative Assembly)
In office 4 July 2022 – 3 August 2023
Governor	Bhagat Singh Koshyari Ramesh Bais
Chief Minister	Eknath Shinde
Dy Chief Minister	Devendra Fadnavis (First) Ajit Pawar (From 02 July 2023) (Second)
Leader of the Opposition	Ajit Pawar Jitendra Awhad (Acting) Himself (Additional Charge)
Speaker of the House	Rahul Narwekar
Preceded by	Sudhir Mungantiwar
Succeeded by	Jitendra Awhad (NCP) Ajay Choudhari (SHS(UTB))
Member of Maharashtra Legislative Assembly
In office 1985 – 26 November 2024
Preceded by	B. J. Khatal-Patil
Succeeded by	Amol Khatal
Parliamentary group	Indian National Congress
Constituency	Sangamner
Cabinet Minister Government of Maharashtra
In office 30 December 2019 – 29 June 2022
Minister	Revenue
Governor	Bhagat Singh Koshyari
Cabinet	Thackeray ministry
Chief Minister	Uddhav Thackeray
Dy Chief Minister	Ajit Pawar
Guardian Minister	Dhule District Additional Charge
Preceded by	Himself (Acting)
Succeeded by	Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil
Incharge
In office 28 November 2019 – 30 December 2019
Minister	Revenue Energy Medical Education School Education Animal Husbandry Dairy Development Fisheries Department
Governor	Bhagat Singh Koshyari
Cabinet	Thackeray ministry
Chief Minister	Uddhav Thackeray
Preceded by	Chandrakant Patil (Revenue Ministry) Chandrashekhar Bawankule (Energy Ministry) Girish Mahajan (Medical Education Ministry) Ashish Shelar (School Education Ministry) Ram Shinde (Animal Husbandry Ministry) Ram Shinde (Dairy Development Ministry) Anil Sukhdevrao Bonde (Fisheries Department Ministry)
Succeeded by	Himself (Revenue Ministry) Nitin Raut (Energy Ministry) Amit Deshmukh (Medical Education Ministry) Varsha Gaikwad (School Education Ministry) Sunil Chhatrapal Kedar (Animal Husbandry Ministry) Sunil Chhatrapal Kedar (Dairy Development Ministry) Aslam Shaikh (Fisheries Department Ministry)
President of Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee
In office 7 July 2019 – 5 February 2021
National President Indian National Congress	Sonia Gandhi
Preceded by	Ashok Chavan
Succeeded by	Nana Patole
Secretary of Maha Vikas Aghadi
Incumbent
Assumed office 26 November 2019
President	Uddhav Thackeray
Chairperson	Sharad Pawar
Preceded by	Position established
Cabinet Minister Government of Maharashtra
In office 11 November 2010 – 26 September 2014
Minister	Revenue Vimukta Jati Food, Civil Supplies Consumer Affairs State Border Defence (First)
Governor	Kateekal Sankaranarayanan Om Prakash Kohli (additional charge) C. Vidyasagar Rao
Cabinet	Prithviraj Chavan ministry
Chief Minister	Prithviraj Chavan
Dy Chief Minister	Ajit Pawar
Guardian Minister	Ahmednagar District Buldhana District Nagpur District
Preceded by	Narayan Rane (Revenue Ministry) Radhakrishna Vikhe-Patil (Vimukta Jati Ministry) Anil Deshmukh (Food, Civil Supplies Ministry) Anil Deshmukh (Consumer Protection Ministry) Patangrao Kadam (State Border Defence Ministry)
Succeeded by	Eknath Khadse (Revenue Ministry) Mahadev Jankar (Vimukta Jati Ministry) Girish Bapat (Food, Civil Supplies Ministry) Girish Bapat (Consumer Protection Ministry) Eknath Khadse (State Border Defence Ministry)
In office 7 November 2009 – 9 November 2010
Minister	Agriculture Soil and Water Conservation School Education Marathi Language
Governor	S. C. Jamir K. Sankaranarayanan
Cabinet	Second Ashok Chavan ministry
Chief Minister	Ashok Chavan
Dy Chief Minister	Chhagan Bhujbal
Guardian Minister	Ahmednagar District Kolhapur District Latur District
Preceded by	Himself (Agriculture Ministry) Himself (Soil and Water Conservation Ministry) Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil (School Education Ministry) Vijaykumar Krishnarao Gavit (Marathi Language Ministry)
Succeeded by	Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil (Agriculture Ministry) Ramraje Naik Nimbalkar (Soil and Water Conservation Ministry) Rajendra Darda (School Education Ministry) Radhakrishna Vikhe-Patil (Marathi Language Ministry)
In office 8 December 2008 – 6 November 2009
Minister	Agriculture Protocol Soil and Water Conservation
Governor	S. C. Jamir
Cabinet	First Ashok Chavan ministry
Chief Minister	Ashok Chavan
Dy Chief Minister	Chhagan Bhujbal
Preceded by	Himself (Agriculture Ministry) Himself (Protocol Ministry) Surupsingh Hirya Naik (Soil and Water Conservation Ministry)
Succeeded by	Himself (Agriculture Ministry) Ashok Chavan CM (Protocol Ministry) Himself (Soil and Water Conservation Ministry)
In office 1 November 2004 – 4 December 2008
Minister	Agriculture Protocol
Cabinet	Second Deshmukh ministry
Chief Minister	Vilasrao Deshmukh
Dy Chief Minister	R. R. Patil
Preceded by	Sushilkumar Shinde CM (Agriculture Ministry) Ashok Chavan (Protocol Ministry)
Succeeded by	Himself (Agriculture Ministry) Himself (Protocol Ministry)
Minister of State Government of Maharashtra
In office 18 January 2003 – 4 November 2004
Minister	Agriculture Horticulture Socially and Educationally Backward Classes
Cabinet	Sushilkumar Shinde ministry
Chief Minister	Sushilkumar Shinde
Dy Chief Minister	Chhagan Bhujbal (2003) Vijaysingh Mohite-Patil (2003-04)
In office 18 October 1999 – 16 January 2003
Minister	Public Works (Including Public Undertakings) Command Area Development Information Technology
Cabinet	First Deshmukh ministry
Chief Minister	Vilasrao Deshmukh
Dy Chief Minister	Chhagan Bhujbal

Personal details
Born	Vijay Bhausaheb Thorat (1953-02-07) 7 February 1953
Nationality	Indian
Political party	Indian National Congress
Other political affiliations	Independent
Children	3 daughters & 1 son
Residence(s)	Jorve, Taluka Sangamner, District Ahmednagar, Tapalcha Patta, Sudarshan, 7 Shivjinagar, Sangamner--422605
Education	Fergusson College B.A, ILS Law College, Pune L.L.B
Nickname	Vijay