In a state dominated by Maratha politics and politicians, the 44-year-old leader, with deep roots in RSS, is only the second Brahmin after BJP's estranged ally Shiv Sena's Manohar Joshi to become chief minister.
The soft spoken and portly young leader was a clear favourite for the coveted post through the intense lobbying by a clutch of leaders from BJP's state core committee after it emerged as the single largest party but always looked certain to clinch it, largely due to the confidence he enjoys of both Prime Minister Narendra Modi and party president Amit Shah.
"Devendra is Nagpur's gift to the country," Modi had said of him at an election rally.
