Mumbai: Maharashtra BJP president Ravindra Chavan drew sharp criticism Tuesday over his remarks that “memories” of the late Congress leader Vilasrao Deshmukh “will be erased” from Latur, home city of the former chief minister, after the civic body polls there on 15 January.
The Congress said the BJP leader’s remarks belittled a leader who passed away years ago, which is against Hinduism.
“Lord Ram taught us that enmity ends after death. You don’t understand the Hindu religion and Lord Ram. Vilasrao lives in the hearts of people of not just Latur but the entire state. His memories will never be erased,” state Congress spokesperson Sachin Sawant said.
Adding, “You indulge in Hindutva politics, but there is no place for such hatred in Hindu religion. This is taught in your RSS shakhas.”
Deshmukh’s sons—actor Riteish and politicians Amit and Dhiraj—also slammed Chavan for the statement, while senior BJP leader and former Union minister Raosaheb Danve swung into damage control mode, saying Chavan did not mean to be insulting.
Chavan himself apologised to Deshmukh’s sons, but said, “I have not criticised Vilasrao Deshmukh in my statement, but the Congress is demanding votes in the name of Vilasrao Deshmukh there (in Latur).”
Chavan assumed office as the Maharashtra BJP president in July. He was Food, Civil Supplies and Public Works Minister from 2022 to 2024 in the previous Eknath Shinde-led government in the state.
He made the statement on Deshmukh at a BJP workers’ rally in Latur Monday evening, while expressing confidence his party would win the civic polls there scheduled 15 January.
“To be honest,” he told the gathering, “seeing your enthusiasm today, I am 100 percent sure that the memories of Vilasrao (Deshmukh) will be erased from this city, without a doubt.”
This came after he asked the party workers to raise their hands and chant slogans like “Bharat Mata Ki Jai” and “Vande Mataram”.
Vilasrao Deshmukh, a prominent Congress leader in Maharashtra, served as the state’s 14th chief minister, holding office from 18 October 1999 to 16 January 2003. Later, he again served as chief minister between 1 November 2004 to 5 December 2008.
Deshmukh hailed from Latur in Maharashtra’s Marathwada region.
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The condemnation
Condemning Chavan’s comments, Vilasrao Deshmukh’s elder son and Congress MLA Amit said Monday that his father’s memories cannot be erased simply because an “outsider” comes and makes such statements in Latur.
“In my opinion, with the remarks by Ravindra Chavan, the question is where politics is headed. It is disappointing, he should not have said it. This is not what Latur stands for, nor does Maharashtra. I condemn this statement, and it is being condemned by all, according to me,” the Latur city MLA told reporters Monday after his address at the Congress-VBA “Prachar Sabha” (campaign meeting) in the city.
“The late CM Deshmukh touched the lives of every individual in Latur, and his memories are deeply etched in the hearts of the people,” he added.
On Tuesday, the former chief minister’s younger son, actor Riteish Deshmukh, posted a short video statement on Instagram in Marathi in response to Chavan’s remarks.
“I say with both my hands folded that the names of those who lived for the people are etched on their minds. What is written can be erased, but you can’t erase what is etched,” Riteish says, without naming Chavan.
Vilasrao Deshmukh’s other son and former MLA Dhiraj said Chavan’s statements are “extremely unfortunate and heartbreaking”. He said his father’s relationship with Latur is beyond the BJP’s comprehension. “We did not expect such a statement from him or from the BJP. This statement has hurt the sentiments of all of us, the Latur residents. We condemn that statement in the strongest terms.”
Former NCP leader and Pune mayor Prashant Jagtap, who is now with the Congress, said Chavan’s statement “exposed his sanskar (culture)”, and the “mask of the BJP’s false Hindutva has come off today”.
“In our Hindu culture, any deceased person is considered worthy of worship. In Hinduism, Shraaddh and similar rituals are performed every year to keep the memory of the deceased alive. However, the BJP state president, who is carrying out his political agenda by wearing the shawl of sacred Hindutva, goes to Latur and makes a statement that he will erase the memories of the late Vilasrao Deshmukh forever,” he wrote in a post on X.
Senior Congress leader Balasaheb Thorat said Vilasrao Deshmukh was a son of Latur and the architect of modern Maharashtra.
“No matter how many attempts are made to erase his memories, they will become more and more solid and unshakable in the minds of the people. The language of erasing the memory of a leader who has created a firm place in the minds of the people is a sign of the ideological bankruptcy of the Bharatiya Janata Party,” he said.
Chavan apologises, but moves to ‘next question’
Meanwhile, Chavan said he considers Deshmukh’s son Riteish a “dear friend”, and that his remarks were not politically motivated.
“Vilasrao Deshmukh was a big leader and served as chief minister. But if the feelings of his son, who is a good friend of mine, are hurt, I apologise to him. The statement should not be seen politically,” the BJP leader told reporters here,” he said while speaking to the media Tuesday after an election rally in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar.
“Civic amenities should be the focus of these local body elections. Who will address these issues in a faster manner is important,” he added.
When journalists asked if he would apologise to the people of Latur as well, Chavan simply said, “Next question.”
BJP leader and former Jalna MP Raosaheb Danve said Chavan did not mean to insult the former chief minister. “Ravindra Chavan’s intentions behind his remark on erasing Vilasrao Deshmukh’s memories was that whatever Vilasrao Deshmukh did with regards to the city’s development and whatever he could not do, the BJP will do more and fulfil the expectations of the Laturkars,” he said.
Adding, “We will not let you feel like Vilasrao Deshmukh is not amongst us anymore or that if he was here, our Latur would have done well. He (Chavan) meant that whatever was left to be done, will be done by us.”
(Edited by Ajeet Tiwari)