Mumbai, May 30: Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut on Thursday said that Arvind Sawant, Party's Member of Parliament (MP) from Mumbai South, will be sworn in as Union minister on Thursday. Sawant will replace Anant Geete, the only Sena leader in the previous Narendra Modi-led NDA government, who lost Raigad parliamentary seat in the 2019 Lok Sabha Elections. Narendra Modi Cabinet 2.0: Expected List of Ministers and Portfolios.

Sawant retained his seat by defeating Indian National Congress Mumbai chief Milind Deora by 1,00,067 votes. The 68-year-old leader has been associated with Bal Thackeray's party since the early years. "From Shiv Sena one leader will take oath as a minister. Uddhav Ji has given Arvind Sawant's name, he will take oath as a minister," said Raut. Modi to Take Oath With His New Cabinet of Ministers in Rashtrapati Bhawan at 7 pm.

Earlier in life, Sawant worked as an engineer with MTNL (Mahanagar Telephone Network Ltd) till 1995 and took voluntary retirement after he was nominated to the Maharashtra Legislative Council (MLC) from governor's quota when Shiv Sena-Bharatiya Janata Party government came to power in 1995.

Sawant was elected to MLC from the Mumbai Local bodies constituency. In 2014, he contested the Lok Sabha elections for the first time, defeating Deora from the Mumbai South seat by 1,28,564 votes. Sawant, deputy leader of the Shiv Sena, is also president of MTNL trade union.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 30, 2019 10:08 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).