The Congress alliance partner in Maharashtra, the NCP, has also reportedly expressed unhappiness with Chavan and had sought a replacement.

Former Union home minister Sushilkumar Shinde may replace Prithviraj Chavan as the Maharashtra chief minister soon as the Congress is keen on a change following dismal results in the recently held Lok Sabha polls.

"The Congress high-command is not happy with the working style of chief minister Chavan. They did not expect a near-decimation of the party in the Lok Sabha polls in the state. The party could bag only two seats. In fact, the NCP, which also faced various corruption charges performed better than the Congress securing four seats. Most of the party leaders feel that Chavan is solely responsible for the extremely poor performance in the general elections. And, if Chavan is not changed at this juncture; then the party will be completed wiped out in the state assembly polls," said a senior Congress leader according to a report in the DNA.

The Congress alliance partner in Maharashtra, the NCP, has also reportedly expressed unhappiness with Chavan and had sought a replacement.

The former Union home minister served as the Maharashtra chief minister from 2003 to 2004 earlier. Shinde was recently defeated in the Lok Sabha polls by BJP candidate Sharad Bansode by margin of 1.5 lakh votes in the Solapur constituency.