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Tag: Devendra Fadnavis

  • Maharashtra CM should convey his COVID worries to allies too: BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis

    By PTI

    MUMBAI: BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis on Thursday said Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray should communicate his concerns about large gatherings amid the coronavirus pandemic to his own party and the allies too.

    Fadnavis was speaking to reporters after the launch of `Jan Ashirwad Yatra’ of the newly-inducted Union minister Narayan Rane in Mumbai.

    To a question about Thackeray expressing concerns about public rallies being held amid the pandemic, Fadnavis said, “His concern is correct, but he should communicate it to the NCP, Congress and his own party, Shiv Sena. He should not preach to us alone.”

    The BJP’s rivals should worry “because of the response we are getting at such rallies,” the former chief minister added.

    On opposition by some Sena leaders to Rane’s visit to the memorial of Shiv Sena founder late Bal Thackeray, Fadnavis said, “It is a narrow-minded stand….Such approach has no place in Maharashtra’s politics. I believe Balasaheb Thackeray himself would not have spared any person for such a narrow-minded approach.”

    Rane started his political career with the Sena before joining the Congress and later the BJP.

    Explaining the purpose behind holding rallies during the pandemic, Fadnavis said, “Prime Minister Narendra Modi has made his cabinet more inclusive. The newly-inducted ministers like Narayan Rane are thus engaging in a dialogue with people. It is not meant only for the next year’s BMC (Mumbai civic body) polls. We fell short of two seats last time in the BMC, this time we will bridge the gap.”

    Asked about cases being filed against BJP workers for organizing rallies, Fadnavis said, “Our DNA has been shaped by working as opposition for many years. We do not get rattled by such complaints….You can not put pressure on BJP by merely using the police force.”

  • Big battle in BJP Maharashtra, incumbent state president Chandrakant Patil may go soon

    Express News Service

    Maharashtra BJP president Chandrakant Patil has been the eyes and nose of Amit Shah in Maharashtra, but his days seem to be numbered as state president.

    According to the highly placed sources in BJP, Maharashtra state president Chandrakant Patil is no more in the good books of Union minister Amit Shah. As a replacement, senior BJP leaders Chandrashekhar Bawankule and Ashish Shelar, a close confidant of Amit Shah, are going round. Devendra Fadnavis is pitching Bawankule’s name as president as an OBC face.

    “Patil’s extra adventurous decisions of cozying up with MNS chief Raj Thackeray has not gone down well with the Delhi leadership of the BJP in view of Uttar Pradesh state elections. Raj Thackeray is known for his anti north Indian stand. If the BJP allies with Thackeray for the upcoming municipal polls that will have larger repercussions damaging the north Indian vote bank and sending the wrong message ahead of crucial Uttar Pradesh state polls,” said sources requested anonymity.

    Chandrakant Patil was in Delhi and he returned back without meeting Amit Shah and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. On the other hand, Leader of Opposition and BJP MLA Devendra Fadnavis met Amit Shah and discussed state issues as well.

    Patil tried to clarify that he had no schedule to meet Amit Shah and Narendra Modi. “But had I met both the leaders, it would have been a great visit to Delhi. I was told that they were busy in the ongoing monsoon session of parliament. People should not read much in my not meeting Amit Shah and Narendra Modi in Delhi visit,” Patil said.

    Sources said that the Patil-Fadnavis duo is not able to topple and counter the Maha Vikas Aghadi led by Uddhav Thackeray, successfully.

    “Delhi leadership of BJP are very much concerned about the Uttar Pradesh and Lok Sabha 2024. Maharashtra is the state that sends 48 members of parliaments that is big therefore they could not afford to lose Maharashtra for a long time. The RSS has also asked to get their act together as BJP organisation is in disarray,” said source requested anonymity.

  • Maharashtra government package silent on immediate relief to farmers: Ex-CM Devendra Fadnavis

    By PTI

    MUMBAI: Leader of Opposition in the Maharashtra Assembly Devendra Fadnavis on Wednesday said the state government has given immediate relief of only Rs 1,500 crore to the flood-affected districts, a day after the state announced a Rs 11,500-crore financial package.

    He also alleged that no immediate relief was announced by the MVA government for priority sections like farmers in the package. The package has made separate financial provisions for rain and flood-affected people besides for repair works and reconstruction of roads and other critical infrastructure damaged in the deluge last month.

    “A provision of Rs 10,000 crore, including the reconstruction provision of Rs 3,000 crore and Rs 7,000 crore for other schemes (in the package), is made for long-term measures. The actual immediate relief is only Rs 1,500 crore,” Fadnavis said in a statement.

    The senior BJP leader also claimed a release issued by the government on Tuesday had no mention of the 2019 flood relief aid, including compensation for crop loss, food grains supply, cleanliness grants, aid for house construction etc.

  • Leader of Opposition Devendra Fadnavis seeks all-party meet to discuss measures for flood management

    By PTI
    MUMBAI: Leader of Opposition in the Maharashtra Assembly Devendra Fadnavis on Sunday urged Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray to convene an all-party meeting to discuss long-term measures for tackling floods, in the wake of some parts of the state facing deluge after heavy rains last month.

    Fadnavis, who toured flood-ravaged areas of the Konkan region and western Maharashtra over the last few days, in a letter to the chief minister said all previous reports pertaining to floods should be studied and their recommendations be implemented.

    He also sought a separate disaster management authority for districts in Konkan, considering the frequency of natural calamities in the region.

    “For deliberating on long-term measures, an all-party meeting should be convened,” the former CM said in the letter while listing 26 demands.

    He sought a separate fund to provide immediate financial assistance to the kin of the flood victims and the affected people.

    Cleanliness of the flood-hit areas should also be taken up on priority, Fadnavis said.

    He demanded that the administration take steps to provide food, clothing, medicines and temporary shelter to the flood affected people.

    Fadnavis said around 700 COVID-19 patients and 25 deaths are reported every day in Kolhapur, and demanded special safety precautions against the viral infection.

    Notably, Kolhapur in western Maharashtra was severely affected by floods last month.

    Fadnavis said the financial aid for crop losses and cleaning of agriculture land should be deposited in the bank accounts of farmers immediately.

    He also demanded financial assistance for fishermen in the Konkan region and for shopkeepers in flood-hit areas.

    The BJP leader further sought relief for handcart pullers and street vendors.

    He also demanded an allowance for those whose houses have been damaged, till they are rehabilitated.

    Special loan scheme at concessional interest rates should be formulated for different sections of society to resurrect their lives, he said.

    The government should help banks to implement such a scheme, he added Fadnavis also said a scheme initiated during his government’s tenure about the construction of diversion canals to channelise flood waters to drought-hit areas should be expedited.

     

  • Maharashtra Government did not avail of NSO’s services till I was CM: Fadnavis

    By PTI
    MUMBAI: BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis on Tuesday said Maharashtra government did not avail of the services the private Israeli firm NSO, which licenses its military-grade Pegasus spyware to governments for tracking terrorists and criminals, as long as he was the state chief minister.

    Fadnavis, Maharashtra chief minister during 2014-19, and now Opposition leader in the state Assembly, was speaking to reporters following claims that the Pegasus software, that can infect phones without a click, was used in attempted and successful hacks of smartphones belonging to journalists, human rights activists and business executives in India and many other countries.

    “Maharashtra government did not avail of any services from NSO till I was the chief minister,” Fadnavis said.

    “A team of DGIPR (the state government’s publicity department) went to Israel after the (2019 Assembly) elections and before the next government was formed, but that trip was for agriculture development purposes,” the BJP leader said.

    The Central government has already rubbished reports on the alleged snooping using Pegasus, Fadnavis said. “There is only legal interception, there is no illegal hacking,” he added.

    The issue of snooping using Pegasus spyware has snowballed into a massive political row in Parliament and outside as various parties demanded a thorough investigation and sacking of Home Minister Amit Shah, while the government maintained it had nothing to do with it.

    The Congress accused the government of treason and held Shah responsible for the snooping and hacking of phones of journalists, judges and politicians, and demanded a probe into the “role of the prime minister” in the entire matter as well.

    Fadnavis alluded to the surfacing of the Pegasus controversy as a plan to defame India. “We noticed that one or two media (outlets) got Chinese funding and carried out propaganda,” he said.

    The Pegasus issue is part of a design to derail the ongoing Parliament session, Fadnavis said. “There are some international forces that are trying to malign the image of the country, especially when Prime Minister Narendra Modi is taking the country on the path of progress. He has formed the most inclusive government with ministers from SCs and OBCs. The opposition deliberately brought out this story ahead of the session,” Fadnavis said.

    “The Central government has denied having snooped on any person with the help of NSO. One should trust it,” Fadnavis said when asked about claims by a British newspaper that there were traces of hacking in the phone used by political strategist Prashant Kishor, who as Mamata Banerjee’s chief political strategist, is credited with Trinamool Congress’ big win against BJP in this year’s Assembly elections in West Bengal.

    Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee spokesperson Sachin Sawant had on Monday asked if the ‘Pegasus scandal’ happened during the tenure of the Fadnavis-led government in the state.

    “Was any IPS officer sitting in Mantralaya working on this? With whose permission did the DGIPR officers go to Israel? What training did they receive? Did they come back and report? Is it related to Pegasus? It is surprising and suspicious that such tours have taken place during the election period”, Sawant had said.

    “How many times did some officers go to Israel? Were there any government meetings with NSO? What was the correspondence with NSO? It should all come to the fore,” the Congress spokesperson had sought to know.

  • Why scared to hold Speaker’s election despite majority in House: Fadnavis asks MVA 

    By PTI
    MUMBAI: Amid reports that the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) dispensation in Maharashtra was planning to change rules to adopt the method of open voting for the state Assembly Speaker’s election, senior BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis on Thursday asked why the state government was scared despite having majority in the House.

    He said the move showed that the MVA allies not only trust one another but also their own legislators.

    Fadnavis also reiterated that the three-party MVA dispensation will collapse under its own weight, and asserted that once that happens, his party would provide an alternative government in the state.

    The Leader of Opposition in the state Assembly was speaking to reporters at the Rambhau Mhalgi Prabodhini near here.

    The Assembly speaker’s post has been lying vacant since February after Nana Patole resigned to take charge as the state Congress president.

    As per tradition, the speaker is elected unopposed.

    When asked about the state government considering changing rules for holding the speaker’s election, Fadnavis said, “If you have majority, why are you scared and why are you changing rules? Why do you want elections through show of hands (open voting)? This means that the MVA allies don’t trust each other and also their own legislators.”

    “Any meeting for change of the legislative rules has to be convened by the speaker. Deputy speaker doesn’t have the authority. Without the speaker such a meeting is not valid,” he added.

    Meanwhile, sources said that change in rules for holding the speaker’s election is under consideration of the government.

    A preliminary meeting took place recently, but nothing has been finalised yet, they said.

    Fadnavis said, “When the issue comes before us, we will take a stand.”

    The former chief minister said when Congress’s state unit chief Nana Patole speaks of going alone in the next Assembly polls, NCP president Sharad Pawar counters him and Congress leaders, who meet Pawar, don’t take Patole along, which shows what is happening among the ruling allies.

    “We are playing the role of strong opposition. I have been saying from day one that this government will collapse under its own weight. I did not give any time-frame. When it collapses, we will give an alternative government,” he said.

    His statement comes a day after Maharashtra BJP president Chandrakant Patil said the MVA allies will fight among themselves, but they will not let the three-party government fall.

    The MVA, an unlikely coalition of the Shiv Sena and its one-time opponents, the NCP and the Congress, came to power in November 2019.

    In the past, the opposition BJP has raised questions over the stability of the Shiv Sena-led government with Fadnavis and other leaders saying the coalition will collapse under the weight of its internal contradictions.

    However, MVA allies have repeatedly asserted that the Uddhav Thackeray government is stable and will complete its full five-year term (which ends in 2024).

    Fadnavis also said that senior NCP leader and minister Chhagan Bhujbal met him to discuss about preparing the empirical data of the Other Backward Classes (OBC) to restore the political reservations to the community in local bodies that was struck down by the Supreme Court.

    “During our government, we prepared the empirical data of Marathas, which was upheld by the Supreme Court,” he said.

  • After ‘under watch’ remark, Patole says no rift in MVA; BJP seeks explanation from Uddhav

    By PTI
    MUMBAI/NAGPUR: Maharashtra Congress president Nana Patole has sought to suggest the state government is keeping an eye over his movement and claimed that Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) allies Shiv Sena and the NCP feel the ground was slipping from beneath their feet due to his party’s growing influence.

    As his ‘under watch’ statement created a controversy, Patole on Monday claimed wrong information was being spread through the media and asserted there was no dispute among MVA allies and the Congress was being deliberately targeted.

    Reacting to Patole’s suggestion that his movement was being tracked, the NCP, which handles the home deparment, said his claim was based on incomplete information, while the Shiv Sena asserted that all was well in the ruling alliance.

    Wading into the row, BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis said Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and deputy CM Ajit Pawar should give explanation on the allegations made by Patole.

    It all started with a speech the state Congress president gave in Lonavala, a hill station around 125km from Mumbai, during the weekend.

    Speaking at a meeting of party workers in Lonavala, Patole said the Congress is resurrecting itself in Maharashtra and this has caused disquiet among the Shiv Sena and the NCP.

    The MPCC did not name the two MVA partners while making a reference about them in his speech.

    The Congress is part of the three-party Shiv Sena-led MVA government.

    He also sought to hint that the government is keeping an eye on his activities.

    “Every morning at 9, intelligence report is submitted to the chief minister and the home minister on what is happening in the state. The Congress is resurrecting itself and the report is making the ground beneath their feet slip away. I am here in Lonavala but the report will go to them,” he said.

    ALSO READ | Maharashtra govt sets up panel to probe phone-tapping allegations made by state Cong chief Nana Patole

    Patole later told a Marathi news channel that his statement hinting at tracking of his movement has been misconstrued.

    “I have not made any comment that the state government is keeping a watch on me. My allegations were against the Centre,” he said.

    Meanwhile, the NCP said the allegations of Patole that he was under watch of the intelligence department were based on incomplete information.

    Addressing a press conference, NCP spokesperson and minority affairs minister Nawab Malik said the police have a special department to report movements of important leaders, their meetings, political programmes and agitation.

    This has been the long-standing practice irrespective of which party or alliance is in power.

    Relevant information is collected and a comprehensive report is submitted to the home department and the chief minister, he said.

    “If Patole is unaware of this process, he should consult former CMs of the Congress – Ashok Chavan, Sushilkumar Shinde, Prithviraj Chavan,” Malik said.

    The NCP minister said if Patole doesn’t want police ‘bandobast’ (security arrangement) for himself or leaders of his party, he should make an application and the home minister would take a decision on that.

    Congress leader and minister Balasaheb Thorat said, “I don’t know what he (Patole) meant. He would be in a better position to explain.”

    Shiv Sena leader and minister Eknath Shinde sought to downplay Patole’s remark and said the MVA was working well.

    “The Shiv Sena-Congress-NCP alliance was working fine,” he added.

    Asked by journalists in Nagpur whether the Maharashtra CM or the deputy CM will be speaking to him over his controversial statement, Patole said, “I will feel good talking with them.”

    “There is no dispute between us and if anyone is trying to create dispute through the media, it will be resolved through discussions. I will certainly like to talk to the CM and the Deputy CM,” he said.

    He said the Congress is becoming people’s party in Maharashtra and the BJP is losing ground and hence “wrong news reports” are being circulated against his organization.

    “I want to tell that the MVA government will complete its full 5-year term. The BJP, from the day MVA government came to power, has been saying that this government will fall.”

    “But, the government has completed almost two years and their intentions have not been successful. Hence, wrong news is being circulated,” said Patole.

    Answering a query on the Congress’s future plan, he blasted the BJP, the main opposition party in Maharashtra.

    “The Congress is fighting across the country and in Maharashtra it is protesting over the price rise issue for the last four days. The Congress is getting a huge support from people. The BJP has taken a note of it and hence with the help of the media, it is creating a picture of dispute between MVA allies. There is no dispute between the three parties,” Patole said.

    To a query whether some state Congress leaders are disappointed with him and are complaining to the central leadership, Patole said, “Our leaders are going to Delhi for their respective work.”

    “The Congress is being targeted and a particular person is being targeted, which means that person is becoming important in Maharashtra.  People’s support for the Congress is growing. There is no rift in the Maharashtra Congress and the party is working unitedly,” he said.

    Meanwhile, Fadnavis said in Nagpur that Patole’ s statement indicates that the NCP and the Shiv Sena were uncomfortable with the Congress’s claim of its growing popularity.

    ALSO READ | Won’t react to small people: Pawar on Maharashtra Congress chief’s remarks on nephew Ajit

    “Nana Patole’ s statement indicates that the NCP and the Shiv Sena are afraid of the Congress’s announcement of re-establishing itself on its own and hence they are keeping a watch on him. Now, the CM and the deputy CM should tell why they are so afraid, and why they are keeping a watch on him, ” said Fadnavis.

    Fadnavis was speaking to reporters after visiting the family of a Nagpur resident, Manoj Thawkar, who was allegedly beaten up by police and subsequently died.

    Police have denied the allegation.

    “This incident is very serious, wherein a handicapped youth is beaten up with sticks just because he was not wearing a mask. I have seen the videos of eyewitnesses who claimed he was beaten up in public and again at a police station,” the former CM said.

    “It means this death occurred due to the police beating,” he said and demanded action against the erring police personnel. The BJP on its part will give Rs 2 lakh assistance to the victim’s family,” Fadnavis said.

  • Devendra Fadnavis rubbishes talk about Munde sisters being unhappy over non-inclusion in Modi Cabinet

    By PTI
    MUMBAI: Dismissing reports that non-inclusion of BJP’s two-time MP Pritam Munde into the Union Cabinet has left her and her elder sister Pankaja Munde angry, senior BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis on Thursday said attempts to malign them and spreading rumours should stop.

    Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday carried out a major revamp of his cabinet.

    While 12 ministers resigned from the cabinet, a total of 43 new ministers were sworn-in.

    Four leaders from Maharashtra were inducted into the cabinet.

    There was a speculation that Pritam Munde would get a cabinet berth.

    However, she failed to find any place in it.

    When asked about reports that Pankaja Munde was angry with the party leadership for not inducting her sister Pritam into the Union cabinet, Fadnavis shot back saying, “Who told you they are angry? Don’t spread rumours and malign them.”

    He was speaking to reporters in Nashik.

    The daughter of BJP leader late Gopinath Munde, Pritam Munde, is BJP’s Lok Sabha member from Beed constituency.

    Her elder sister Pankaja, who was a minister during the Fadnavis-led state government, had lost the 2019 Assembly polls from Parali seat, her home turf.

    Fadnavis, who is the Leader of Opposition in the state Legislative Assembly, also dismissed speculation that induction of former Maharashtra chief minister Narayan Rane into the Union cabinet has ended any possibility of a patch up between the Shiv Sena and the BJP.

    “No decision is taken based on political speculations. Rane has been inducted because of his capabilities,” Fadnavis said.

    Recently, while replying to a query over speculation about the estranged saffron allies coming together, Fadnavis had said that the Sena and the BJP are not enemies and any decision on patch up will be taken as per prevailing situations.

    Replying to a query on the Enforcement Directorate (ED) probe against senior leader Eknath Khadse after he quit the BJP to join the NCP, Fadnavis said, “Law will take its own course. BJP does not believe in vindictive politics.”

  • BJP holds mock session outside Maharashtra Assembly against suspension of 12 MLAs

    By PTI
    MUMBAI: BJP legislators, under the leadership Devendra Fadnavis, set up a “counter Assembly” on the steps of the Vidhan Bhavan here on Tuesday to hold a mock session as a mark of protest against the suspension of 12 party MLAs from the House for alleged misbehaviour.

    In the morning, several BJP legislators squatted on the stairs of the Legislature building and shouted slogans against the Uddhav Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA-comprising the Shiv Sena, NCP and Congress) government.

    Fadnavis, who is the leader of opposition in the Assembly, announced BJP MLA Kalidas Kolamkar as the “speaker of the (counter) House” and proposed to hold a discussion.

    The former chief minister, while addressing the MLAs, claimed the 12 party legislators were suspended on the basis of false allegations.

    “Today, I propose a resolution against this government here and I request the members to start a discussion on the proposal,” he said.

    Fadnavis said his party MLAs want to speak against the functioning of this “tyrant government”.

    “They want to expose this ‘Vasooli’ (extortionist) and corrupt government,” he said.

    Later, security officials stopped the BJP members from using loudspeakers even as they shouted slogans against the government.

    Fadnavis told reporters that the government cannot stop the BJP from raising its voice against the “high-handedness” of the ruling dispensation.

    “Has the government imposed emergency?” he asked.

    “This is a black chapter…this is murder of democracy,” the BJP leader alleged.

    On Monday, 12 BJP MLAs were suspended from the Assembly for one year after the state government accused them of “misbehaving” with presiding officer Bhaskar Jadhav in the Speaker’s chamber.

    Fadnavis had termed the allegation as false and said Jadhav’s account of the incident was “one-sided”

  • BJP-Shiv Sena’s relationship is like Aamir Khan and Kiran Rao: Sanjay Raut

    By ANI
    MUMBAI: Shiv Sena leader and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut on Monday compared his party’s equation with former coalition partner Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) with the relationship between actor Aamir Khan and wife Kiran Rao who recently announced their separation.

    Raut’s reaction came after former Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Sunday said that BJP and Shiv Sena are “not enemies”. “We are not India-Pakistan. Look at Aamir Khan and Kiran Rao, it is like them. Our (Shiv Sena and BJP) political ways are different but the friendship will remain intact,” said Raut.

    Shiv Sena leader’s remarks came amid speculation of a rift in the Maha Vikas Aghadi government in the state and BJP allying with Shiv Sena. However, BJP had denied the possibility of any such alliance between the two parties.

    Asked about Fadnavis’ comment, Maharashtra BJP president Chandrakant Patil said, “Devendra Fadnavis has said BJP, Shiv Sena are not enemies, it’s 100 per cent true but this doesn’t mean that both will come together and form a government.”

    On Sunday, Leader of Opposition in Maharashtra Assembly Fadnavis said there might be some differences between BJP and Shiv Sena but they are not enemies.

    Briefing media persons, Fadnavis said, “There are no ifs and buts in politics. Decisions are taken according to the prevailing circumstances. There might be some differences with Shiv Sena but we are not enemies. Remember that Shiv Sena fought elections with us and after the results, joined hands with Congress and NCP.”