Mumbai: The women leaders of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) and the larger opposition in Maharashtra have managed to bring the state’s Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari to the same side as the Opposition for a change, amidst constant clashes between the two.
Governor Koshyari had written to the CMO in November asking the CM, Eknath Shinde, to make his party leaders and ministers understand why their comments against women are objectionable.
This letter was written after taking cognisance of the request and memo submitted by a delegation of women MPs that met Governor Koshyari on 14 November. The delegation, which included leaders from Shiv Sena (UBT), NCP and Samajwadi Party, was led by Jaya Bachchan, Rajya Sabha MP of the Samajwadi Party.
The MVA is an alliance of Shiv Sena (UBT), Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Congress. The Samajwadi party was earlier in alliance with the MVA.
Fauzia Khan, MP from NCP, who was part of the delegation, took to Twitter Saturday to share the letter, thank the Governor and ask the CM to take appropriate actions.
महाराष्ट्र राज्य सरकारमधील जबाबदार पदावर कार्यरत असणाऱ्या मंत्र्यांनी महिलांबाबत अपमानास्पद विधाने केली. याच्या निषेधार्ह सर्व पक्षीय महिला आमदार, खासदारांच्या शिष्टमंडळाने राज्याचे राज्यपाल भगत सिंह कोश्यारी यांच्याकडे निवेदन दिले होते. याची दखल राज्यपालांनी घेतली असून 1/2.. pic.twitter.com/xVSo6jROiM
— Fauzia Khan (@DrFauziaKhanNCP) December 3, 2022
ThePrint has contacted the CMO. This report will be updated once a response is received.
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The delegation
On 14 November, an all-party delegation of women MPs & MLAs met Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari and submitted a memorandum demanding action against Maharashtra ministers using cheap language against women in the state.
The delegation included MPs Jaya Bachchan of Samajwadi party, Priyanka Chaturvedi from Shiv Sena (UBT), and Fauzia Khan of NCP.
The delegation met Koshyari after state agricultural minister Abdul Sattar made derogatory remarks about MP Supriya Sule while another minister Gulabrao Patil called Shiv Sena (UBT) spokesperson Sushma Andhare an ‘actress’ after she criticised Patil.
Sattar’s comments led to NCP leaders protesting outside his residence and demanding his resignation.
“We won’t tolerate insults of women,” Bachchan told the media when submitting the memorandum.
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MVA vs Koshyari
Koshyari and the MVA have constantly clashed even when the alliance was in power.
He took over as the Governor of Maharashtra in September 2019, two months before the Uddhav Thackeray-led MVA assumed power in the state.
The MVA had sent a list of 12 names for the post of MLCs to be nominated from the governor’s quota, which the governor did not approve and sat on it for nearly two years
The Governor had even once taunted Uddhav Thackeray for “turning secular”. MVA parties have often called for Koshyari ‘s removal as Governor.
The latest clash in their relationship was in November when Koshyari said Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj is an “old” icon, leading to widespread protests against him.
(Edited by Theres Sudeep)
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