Mumbai: As political parties in Maharashtra gear up for next year’s Lok Sabha elections, leaders of the Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray), Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) held meetings with their respective party functionaries Wednesday.
While the NCP said it discussed organisational matters and preparing the cadre for local and general elections, BJP national president J.P. Nadda who is currently on a tour of Maharashtra met party workers and functionaries.
The Shiv Sena (UBT) meanwhile, said it had discussed this month’s Supreme Court (SC) verdict on last year’s Sena split — following rebellion by a group of MLAs led by present CM Eknath Shinde — and the need to inform the public of the details of the SC order.
A five-judge bench of the Supreme Court had held earlier this month that former Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari was not “justified” in asking then chief minister Uddhav Thackeray to face a floor test in the wake of the crisis in his party, the undivided Shiv Sena. The court, however, did not restore Thackeray as the chief minister of Maharashtra because he did not face the floor test and had tendered his resignation.
The bench pointed out that Shinde’s appointment as chief minister was not bad in law because he wasn’t a disqualified legislator. The court had further said that the Speaker’s decision to appoint a whip from the Eknath Shinde group was “contrary to law”, as a whip can only be nominated by the political party and not the legislative party (which comprises a party’s legislatives).
The split in the party was followed by the Shinde-led Sena MLAs joining hands with the BJP to form government with Shinde as CM and the BJP’s Devendra Fadnavis as deputy CM.
In a meeting chaired by party chief Uddhav Thackeray at Sena Bhawan, the party headquarters, Wednesday, the Shiv Sena (UBT) decided that the observations of the Supreme Court should reach each and every corner of Maharashtra.
Speaking to the media after the meeting, leader of opposition in the legislative council, Ambadas Danve, said, “After the SC verdict, the Shinde-Fadnavis government will create confusion. Be it regarding the whip or the legislative leader, we have to take this to the grassroots level,” he said.
However, he said elections were not discussed in the meeting, adding, “The Shiv Sena is ready to contest the election anytime.”
Meanwhile, the NCP’s core committee meeting, held at the Y.B. Chavan Centre, was attended by Sharad Pawar, Praful Patel, Ajit Pawar, Jayant Patil, Supriya Sule and other senior leaders. Issues related to party organisation were also discussed. NCP chief spokesperson Mahesh Tapase told the media later that the discussion was focused on preparing the party cadre for local, and general elections.
He added that senior leaders, who are in charge of districts, have been asked to tour assembly constituencies to streamline coordination between local leaders and party-affiliated frontal organisations.
The core committee also took strong objection to revocation of suspension of former Mumbai police commissioner Parambir Singh, he said.
Param Bir Singh had been suspended by the erstwhile Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government — a coalition of the NCP, the Congress and the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena — for alleged “lapses” in the case of explosives being allegedly found outside Antilia, the Mumbai residence of industrialist Mukesh Ambani.
“Is the BJP expressing gratitude to Singh for having falsely framed Anil Deshmukh in a charge which is hearsay on account of Singh’s own admission and does he even have an iota of evidence against Deshmukh,” Jayant Patil, chief of NCP Maharashtra, said to the media. The party will be taking this issue to the public, said Tapase.
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Nadda in state
Meanwhile, BJP national president J.P. Nadda, who is currently on a tour of Maharashtra, was in Mumbai Wednesday and will Thursday address the Maharashtra BJP’s executive committee meeting in Pune, where the party lost the Kasba by-poll to the Congress.
His visit assumes significance in view of the party’s recent rout in Karnataka, and state and Lok Sabha elections next year.
Civic polls too could be held in Maharashtra in October-November, Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had been quoted in the media as saying earlier this week.
In Mumbai, Nadda met party workers and functionaries and spoke about the various central government schemes and how the party is growing across the country.
“During the MVA government, all development work was stopped. But as soon as Shinde and Fadnavis came to power, the work resumed. We have to take this forward,” he said.
Speaking about the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation elections expected this year, Nadda told the cadre, “You need to effectively talk to people about various schemes of the central government… welfare schemes such as Kisan Samma Nidhi Yojana, Ayushman Bharat, etc.”
He added, “You also need to tell people how our government in the state is taking forward the development work which was halted during the MVA regime. For all this, you need to develop (your) communication skills.”
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