News Analysis India

Tag: Devendra Fadnavis

  • Maharashtra’s political atmosphere has become polluted: Sanjay Raut

    By PTI

    MUMBAI: Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut on Sunday claimed Maharashtra’s political atmosphere has become polluted where many people are out to “destroy” each other.

    Raut said he realised this again after coming out of jail on November 9. The Rajya Sabha member was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in a money laundering case on August 1 this year and granted bail by a court in Mumbai on November 9.

    On Sunday, he resumed his weekly column Rokhthok in ‘Saamana’, the Uddhav Thackeray-led Sena faction’s mouthpiece of which he is the executive editor.

    ”There is a feeling of hatred and politicians have now reached a stage where they don’t want their opponents even to be alive. Maharashtra’s political atmosphere has become polluted where people are out to destroy to each other,” Raut claimed.

    “When I was asked about (Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister and BJP leader) Devendra Fadnavis’s comment that bitterness in politics has to end, I replied that he is speaking the truth and media started saying I have toned down,” the Sena leader said.

    “Democracy and freedom do not exist now, these are merely names now. Politics has become poisonous. It was not so during the British rule,” Raut claimed.

    “Today’s rulers in Delhi want to hear what they wish. Those who don’t do that are considered enemies,” he further claimed.

    “China and Pakistan are not Delhi’s enemies, but those who speak the truth and are straight are treated as enemies and such political leaders lower the country’s stature,” he added.READ | My arrest was political, such ‘vendetta politics’ never seen earlier: Sanjay Raut

    MUMBAI: Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut on Sunday claimed Maharashtra’s political atmosphere has become polluted where many people are out to “destroy” each other.

    Raut said he realised this again after coming out of jail on November 9. The Rajya Sabha member was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in a money laundering case on August 1 this year and granted bail by a court in Mumbai on November 9.

    On Sunday, he resumed his weekly column Rokhthok in ‘Saamana’, the Uddhav Thackeray-led Sena faction’s mouthpiece of which he is the executive editor.

    ”There is a feeling of hatred and politicians have now reached a stage where they don’t want their opponents even to be alive. Maharashtra’s political atmosphere has become polluted where people are out to destroy to each other,” Raut claimed.

    “When I was asked about (Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister and BJP leader) Devendra Fadnavis’s comment that bitterness in politics has to end, I replied that he is speaking the truth and media started saying I have toned down,” the Sena leader said.

    “Democracy and freedom do not exist now, these are merely names now. Politics has become poisonous. It was not so during the British rule,” Raut claimed.

    “Today’s rulers in Delhi want to hear what they wish. Those who don’t do that are considered enemies,” he further claimed.

    “China and Pakistan are not Delhi’s enemies, but those who speak the truth and are straight are treated as enemies and such political leaders lower the country’s stature,” he added.READ | My arrest was political, such ‘vendetta politics’ never seen earlier: Sanjay Raut

  • Encroachment around Afzal Khan’s tomb removed; `proud day’, says Maha Deputy CM Fadnavis

    By PTI

    PUNE: The Satara district administration in Maharashtra on Thursday demolished unauthorized structures that stood on government land around the tomb of Afzal Khan, a general of the Adil Shahi dynasty of Bijapur.

    Khan was killed by Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj at the foot of Pratapgad Fort in the district in November 1659.

    Subsequently, a tomb was built at the spot.

    The demolition was carried out as per the High Court’s order, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said, adding that it was a “proud day”.

    The demolition took place on the day Khan was killed by the legendary Maratha king in 1659.

    It is observed as `Shivpratap Din’ by some organizations in Maharashtra.

    The action started in the early hours of Thursday amid heavy police security and it still going on, officials said.

    Satara collector Ruchesh Jaiwanshi told PTI that unauthorized structures were spread over 15 to 20 gunthas of land (one guntha is equal to 1,089 square feet).

    Some portion of the land belongs to the forest department while some parcels belong to the revenue department, he added.

    “Today is a proud day for everyone as today is Shivpratap din. On this day, Afzal Khan was killed by Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj,” deputy CM Fadnavis told Marathi newschannels elsewhere.

    “In 2007, the court had ordered removal of the encroachment. In 2017, we started the process but some legal problems came up,” he added.

    “There were demands (of removal of encroachment) from `Shiv-premise’ (Shivaji Maharaj’s followers) but when they staged protests, cases were registered against them and the encroachment was never removed. Today, it is a matter of satisfaction for everyone that the entire encroachment has been removed,” Fadnavis said.

    PUNE: The Satara district administration in Maharashtra on Thursday demolished unauthorized structures that stood on government land around the tomb of Afzal Khan, a general of the Adil Shahi dynasty of Bijapur.

    Khan was killed by Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj at the foot of Pratapgad Fort in the district in November 1659.

    Subsequently, a tomb was built at the spot.

    The demolition was carried out as per the High Court’s order, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said, adding that it was a “proud day”.

    The demolition took place on the day Khan was killed by the legendary Maratha king in 1659.

    It is observed as `Shivpratap Din’ by some organizations in Maharashtra.

    The action started in the early hours of Thursday amid heavy police security and it still going on, officials said.

    Satara collector Ruchesh Jaiwanshi told PTI that unauthorized structures were spread over 15 to 20 gunthas of land (one guntha is equal to 1,089 square feet).

    Some portion of the land belongs to the forest department while some parcels belong to the revenue department, he added.

    “Today is a proud day for everyone as today is Shivpratap din. On this day, Afzal Khan was killed by Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj,” deputy CM Fadnavis told Marathi newschannels elsewhere.

    “In 2007, the court had ordered removal of the encroachment. In 2017, we started the process but some legal problems came up,” he added.

    “There were demands (of removal of encroachment) from `Shiv-premise’ (Shivaji Maharaj’s followers) but when they staged protests, cases were registered against them and the encroachment was never removed. Today, it is a matter of satisfaction for everyone that the entire encroachment has been removed,” Fadnavis said.

  • Bonhomie between BJP, Shinde faction, and MNS increases, will it translate into new political alignment in Maha?

    By PTI

    MUMBAI: With altered political equations in the state, the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena appears to be gravitating towards the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Shiv Sena faction led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, a key factor to watch for ahead of the Mumbai civic polls where Marathi votes play a crucial role.

    Ever since the fall of the government led by Raj Thackeray’s estranged cousin and arch-rival Uddhav Thackeray in June, the bonhomie between Shinde and his deputy Devendra Fadnavis has led to a buzz of new political alignments.

    Shinde and Fadnavis met Raj Thackeray for MNS’ Deepotsav event in Shivaji Park on the eve of Diwali.

    The brewing chemistry was evident when the trio walked together to the venue in Shivaji Park from the residence of the MNS chief.

    Last month, Raj Thackeray had written a letter to Fadnavis, urging him to withdraw BJP’s candidate from the Andheri East Assembly bypoll in favour of late Shiv Sena MLA Ramesh Latke’s wife.

    The BJP later withdrew its candidate from the race, for which Raj Thackeray thanked Fadnavis.

    In the months leading to the fall of the Shiv Sena-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government, Raj Thackeray had raised the issue of loudspeakers at mosques and announced to visit Ayodhya.

    After the change in guard in Maharashtra, leaders of the BJP and the Shinde faction met Raj Thackeray separately on various occasions.

    Both Shinde and Fadnavis had also met the MNS chief separately.

    Raj Thackeray also wrote a letter to his ‘friend’ Fadnavis, hailing him for setting an example of loyalty and commitment to one’s party by taking over as the Deputy Chief Minister of the state.

    Officially, each side has declined to comment on a possible tie-up in the state. After Fadnavis, Shinde met Raj Thackeray at the Deepotsav event, said Raju Patil, MNS’ lone MLA. He said they are closer by heart but will go ahead with whatever the leadership says.

    With the Uddhav Thackeray faction of Shiv Sena aligning with the Congress and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), the talks of a new political realignment between BJP and MNS are getting louder.

    The possibility of such a scenario comes at a time when civic body polls are around the corner, especially the crucial Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation elections.

    Sujata Anandan, the author of ‘Hindu Hriday Samrat’  How the Shiv Sena changed Mumbai forever, said it is clear that Raj Thackeray’s MNS will go with the BJP as it is not a threat to the party.

    More importantly, Raj Thackeray’s politics since he parted ways with Shiv Sena in 2006 has worked against Uddhav Thackeray, Anandan told PTI.

    Ketan Bhosale, an associate professor at Mumbai University’s Sathaye College, said Raj Thackeray leaned towards Hindutva two years back and shares the same cause with the BJP and the Shinde faction.

    “The MNS chief had done ‘somersaults’ in the past and he is fiercely against Uddhav. This has happened in the past and at every juncture, Raj was always in the camp opposite Uddhav,” Bhosale said, adding the upcoming BMC elections could also be the last chance to consolidate MNS, which is trying to stay relevant politically.

    The MNS was founded in 2006 after Raj Thackeray quit Shiv Sena over who would be Bal Thackeray’s political heir.

    He took up the issue of the sons-of-the-soil, the agenda on which Shiv Sena was built in 1966.

    In 2007, in its debut municipal polls, the MNS won seven seats in Mumbai, followed by 27 in 2012- the highest so far for the party in Mumbai, one of its core base areas. In 2017, it won only seven seats.

    In 2009, riding on the “Marathi manoos” plank, Raj Thackeray ate into the votes of Shiv Sena and BJP in Mumbai, Thane, Pune and Nashik.

    In the Assembly elections held that year, MNS bagged 13 of the 288 seats. This paved the way for an easy win for the Congress-NCP combine, mainly at the cost of Shiv Sena.

    “The MNS’ performance in the first assembly election after it was formed far exceeded the Shiv Sena’s historic performance ” the party (the Shiv Sena) crossed single digits only in 1990,— author Dhaval Kulkarni writes in his book ‘The Cousins Thackeray” Uddhav, Raj and the shadow of their Sena’.

    The 2009 Assembly polls remain the best performance of MNS so far. It has been on a rapid slide since.

    In 2014, the MNS contested 219 seats and forfeited its deposit in 209. It won just one seat and bagged 3.15 per cent of the votes.

    In the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, Raj Thackeray openly advocated the candidature of Narendra Modi for the prime minister’s post and fielded candidates mostly against the Sena.

    More than a year ahead of the polls, he also visited Gujarat and praised Modi. In the 2019 general elections, Raj Thackeray did a U-turn and took up cudgels against Modi. Experts view this as help offered to the Congress-NCP alliance.

    In the Assembly polls held in the same year, the MNS contested 101 seats and forfeited its deposit in 86 segments. It bagged only one seat in the state and garnered 2.25 per cent votes.

    Cut to 2022, Shiv Sena disintegrated by Shinde’s rebellion, it remains interesting to see if MNS fills the void and attracts Marathi votes in alliance with BJP and the Shinde faction.

    MUMBAI: With altered political equations in the state, the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena appears to be gravitating towards the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Shiv Sena faction led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, a key factor to watch for ahead of the Mumbai civic polls where Marathi votes play a crucial role.

    Ever since the fall of the government led by Raj Thackeray’s estranged cousin and arch-rival Uddhav Thackeray in June, the bonhomie between Shinde and his deputy Devendra Fadnavis has led to a buzz of new political alignments.

    Shinde and Fadnavis met Raj Thackeray for MNS’ Deepotsav event in Shivaji Park on the eve of Diwali.

    The brewing chemistry was evident when the trio walked together to the venue in Shivaji Park from the residence of the MNS chief.

    Last month, Raj Thackeray had written a letter to Fadnavis, urging him to withdraw BJP’s candidate from the Andheri East Assembly bypoll in favour of late Shiv Sena MLA Ramesh Latke’s wife.

    The BJP later withdrew its candidate from the race, for which Raj Thackeray thanked Fadnavis.

    In the months leading to the fall of the Shiv Sena-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government, Raj Thackeray had raised the issue of loudspeakers at mosques and announced to visit Ayodhya.

    After the change in guard in Maharashtra, leaders of the BJP and the Shinde faction met Raj Thackeray separately on various occasions.

    Both Shinde and Fadnavis had also met the MNS chief separately.

    Raj Thackeray also wrote a letter to his ‘friend’ Fadnavis, hailing him for setting an example of loyalty and commitment to one’s party by taking over as the Deputy Chief Minister of the state.

    Officially, each side has declined to comment on a possible tie-up in the state. After Fadnavis, Shinde met Raj Thackeray at the Deepotsav event, said Raju Patil, MNS’ lone MLA. He said they are closer by heart but will go ahead with whatever the leadership says.

    With the Uddhav Thackeray faction of Shiv Sena aligning with the Congress and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), the talks of a new political realignment between BJP and MNS are getting louder.

    The possibility of such a scenario comes at a time when civic body polls are around the corner, especially the crucial Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation elections.

    Sujata Anandan, the author of ‘Hindu Hriday Samrat’  How the Shiv Sena changed Mumbai forever, said it is clear that Raj Thackeray’s MNS will go with the BJP as it is not a threat to the party.

    More importantly, Raj Thackeray’s politics since he parted ways with Shiv Sena in 2006 has worked against Uddhav Thackeray, Anandan told PTI.

    Ketan Bhosale, an associate professor at Mumbai University’s Sathaye College, said Raj Thackeray leaned towards Hindutva two years back and shares the same cause with the BJP and the Shinde faction.

    “The MNS chief had done ‘somersaults’ in the past and he is fiercely against Uddhav. This has happened in the past and at every juncture, Raj was always in the camp opposite Uddhav,” Bhosale said, adding the upcoming BMC elections could also be the last chance to consolidate MNS, which is trying to stay relevant politically.

    The MNS was founded in 2006 after Raj Thackeray quit Shiv Sena over who would be Bal Thackeray’s political heir.

    He took up the issue of the sons-of-the-soil, the agenda on which Shiv Sena was built in 1966.

    In 2007, in its debut municipal polls, the MNS won seven seats in Mumbai, followed by 27 in 2012- the highest so far for the party in Mumbai, one of its core base areas. In 2017, it won only seven seats.

    In 2009, riding on the “Marathi manoos” plank, Raj Thackeray ate into the votes of Shiv Sena and BJP in Mumbai, Thane, Pune and Nashik.

    In the Assembly elections held that year, MNS bagged 13 of the 288 seats. This paved the way for an easy win for the Congress-NCP combine, mainly at the cost of Shiv Sena.

    “The MNS’ performance in the first assembly election after it was formed far exceeded the Shiv Sena’s historic performance ” the party (the Shiv Sena) crossed single digits only in 1990,— author Dhaval Kulkarni writes in his book ‘The Cousins Thackeray” Uddhav, Raj and the shadow of their Sena’.

    The 2009 Assembly polls remain the best performance of MNS so far. It has been on a rapid slide since.

    In 2014, the MNS contested 219 seats and forfeited its deposit in 209. It won just one seat and bagged 3.15 per cent of the votes.

    In the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, Raj Thackeray openly advocated the candidature of Narendra Modi for the prime minister’s post and fielded candidates mostly against the Sena.

    More than a year ahead of the polls, he also visited Gujarat and praised Modi. In the 2019 general elections, Raj Thackeray did a U-turn and took up cudgels against Modi. Experts view this as help offered to the Congress-NCP alliance.

    In the Assembly polls held in the same year, the MNS contested 101 seats and forfeited its deposit in 86 segments. It bagged only one seat in the state and garnered 2.25 per cent votes.

    Cut to 2022, Shiv Sena disintegrated by Shinde’s rebellion, it remains interesting to see if MNS fills the void and attracts Marathi votes in alliance with BJP and the Shinde faction.

  • Vedanta-Foxconn: Aaditya hits back at Fadnavis, says Maha also ‘no Pakistan’

    By PTI

    MUMBAI: Shiv Sena leader Aaditya Thackeray on Saturday hit back at Maharashtra deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis over his “Gujarat is no Pakistan” comment amid a row over the shifting of the Vendanta-Foxconn project to the neighbouring state.

    Aaditya, a former minister, asked whether Maharashtra is Pakistan to take away the project to Gujarat.

    “Is Maharashtra Pakistan that you drove the project to Gujarat? What mistake has the youth of Maharashtra done?” questioned Aaditya.

    He was speaking at an event to pay respect to social reformer and his great-grandfather Keshav Thackeray, also known as Prabhodankar Thackeray.

    Fadnavis on Friday said the neighbouring state was “no Pakistan”, and also accused the previous Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government of graft.

    “Gujarat is no Pakistan. It is our brother. This is a healthy competition. We want to get ahead of Karnataka, and everyone. The Opposition’s policy was to stop everything, and with such policy, Maharashtra could not beat Gujarat,” the senior BJP leader had said.

    The Eknath Shinde-Devendra Fadnavis government has been facing flak after Vedanta-Foxconn chose Gujarat to set up its multi-billion semiconductor plant.

    Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Ashish Shelar on Thursday demanded an investigation by a retired judge into the entire episode.

    He had also taken a dig at the previous MVA government, saying it had offered tax concessions on foreign liquor instead of for the project, and if it had done so, the project would have remained in Maharashtra.

    Without naming Shelar, Aaditya also asked whether raising the issues of Maharashtra was a crime.

    “Whoever speaks is being probed or allegations are levelled against him. Is strengthening the voice of Maharashtra a crime? Whom are you going to probe? The Centre or (Anil) Agarwal (the chairman of Vedanta),” he said.

    MUMBAI: Shiv Sena leader Aaditya Thackeray on Saturday hit back at Maharashtra deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis over his “Gujarat is no Pakistan” comment amid a row over the shifting of the Vendanta-Foxconn project to the neighbouring state.

    Aaditya, a former minister, asked whether Maharashtra is Pakistan to take away the project to Gujarat.

    “Is Maharashtra Pakistan that you drove the project to Gujarat? What mistake has the youth of Maharashtra done?” questioned Aaditya.

    He was speaking at an event to pay respect to social reformer and his great-grandfather Keshav Thackeray, also known as Prabhodankar Thackeray.

    Fadnavis on Friday said the neighbouring state was “no Pakistan”, and also accused the previous Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government of graft.

    “Gujarat is no Pakistan. It is our brother. This is a healthy competition. We want to get ahead of Karnataka, and everyone. The Opposition’s policy was to stop everything, and with such policy, Maharashtra could not beat Gujarat,” the senior BJP leader had said.

    The Eknath Shinde-Devendra Fadnavis government has been facing flak after Vedanta-Foxconn chose Gujarat to set up its multi-billion semiconductor plant.

    Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Ashish Shelar on Thursday demanded an investigation by a retired judge into the entire episode.

    He had also taken a dig at the previous MVA government, saying it had offered tax concessions on foreign liquor instead of for the project, and if it had done so, the project would have remained in Maharashtra.

    Without naming Shelar, Aaditya also asked whether raising the issues of Maharashtra was a crime.

    “Whoever speaks is being probed or allegations are levelled against him. Is strengthening the voice of Maharashtra a crime? Whom are you going to probe? The Centre or (Anil) Agarwal (the chairman of Vedanta),” he said.

  • Maharashtra Deputy CM Fadnavis asks police to conduct probe into Cyrus Mistry’s fatal accident

    By PTI

    MUMBAI: Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Sunday said he has asked the state police to conduct a detailed investigation into the accident in which former Tata Sons chairman Cyrus Mistry was killed.

    Fadnavis said he was shocked and deeply pained to know about the demise of Mistry (54) in the unfortunate accident near Palghar adjoining Mumbai.

    “Spoke to DGP and instructed for detailed investigations,” tweeted Fadnavis, who is also the state home minister.

    ALSO READ | Former Tata Sons head Cyrus Mistry killed in car crash in Palghar

    “My deepest condolences to his family, friends and colleagues,” he said.

    Mistry was on Sunday killed after his car hit a divider in Palghar district.

    He was travelling from Ahmedabad to Mumbai in a Mercedes car, a police official said.

    The accident took place on a bridge over the Surya river, Palghar district Superintendent of Police Balasaheb Patil said.

    MUMBAI: Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Sunday said he has asked the state police to conduct a detailed investigation into the accident in which former Tata Sons chairman Cyrus Mistry was killed.

    Fadnavis said he was shocked and deeply pained to know about the demise of Mistry (54) in the unfortunate accident near Palghar adjoining Mumbai.

    “Spoke to DGP and instructed for detailed investigations,” tweeted Fadnavis, who is also the state home minister.

    ALSO READ | Former Tata Sons head Cyrus Mistry killed in car crash in Palghar

    “My deepest condolences to his family, friends and colleagues,” he said.

    Mistry was on Sunday killed after his car hit a divider in Palghar district.

    He was travelling from Ahmedabad to Mumbai in a Mercedes car, a police official said.

    The accident took place on a bridge over the Surya river, Palghar district Superintendent of Police Balasaheb Patil said.

  • ‘We are Hindutvawadi, but we are not the BJP’s slave’, says Shiv Sena in editorial

    By PTI

    PUNE: The Shiv Sena on Tuesday said Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis’s claim of working to fulfil the “dream” of Sena founder Balasaheb Thackeray was a ploy to break the Marathi unity in Mumbai where civic polls are due.

    “Why are you seeking votes in the name of Balasaheb? Has your Modi era, Modi wave started receding?” an editorial in the Sena mouthpiece ‘Saamana’ asked.

    In June this year, Sena MLA Eknath Shinde and 39 other legislators rebelled against the party leadership, leading to the collapse of the Uddhav Thackeray-led Maharashtra government.

    Shinde was then sworn in as the chief minister on June 30 along with BJP leader Fadnavis as his deputy.

    The editorial said leaders like Devendra Fadnavis of the BJP are now embracing the “dream of Balasaheb”, but they did not remember the late Sena supremo while snapping ties with the party in 2014.

    They did not remember the dreams of Balasaheb while going back on the word of chief ministerial post to the Shiv Sena in 2019, it said.

    “Fadnavis’s words are akin to the deceitful invitation of a fox, and people of Mumbai and Thane should be cautious,” the Marathi daily said.

    “The language of ‘dream of Balasaheb’ used by the BJP is nothing but a ploy to break the Marathi unity in Mumbai and for that they are injuring the Shiv Sena,” it claimed.

    The people who forgot (BJP veterans) Lal Krishna Advani, Atal Bihar Vajpayee, will they fulfil the dreams of Balasaheb? it asked.

    Today’s Bharatiya Janata Party is “not the real BJP”, the editorial claimed and asked if the party, which belonged to Vajpayee and Advani, really exists.

    “The BJP of Vajpayee was all about keeping the promise but it is not there now and that is why we left such BJP (alliance) and set out on a different path of “Hindutva”.

    “Our political stand is still the same. We are Hindutvawadi, but we are not the BJP’s slave. We are honest servants of Maharashtra, not the ‘charandas’ (servant) of Delhi,” the Sena said.

    ALSO READ | Uddhav vs Shinde: SC refers petitions filed by rival Shiv Sena factions to constitution bench

    Further hitting out at Fadnavis, it said he is continuously chanting the name of Balasaheb.

    “He is saying give us votes in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation elections and we (BJP) will fulfil Balasaheb’s dreams. What is this sham? Which dream of Balsaheb are you going to fulfil?” it asked.

    “Your dream of creating a split in the Shiv Sena, was it the dream of Balasaheb?”, it asked.

    Fadnavis was “wise and profound” but that status is now denigrated in the company of the Eknath Shinde faction, it claimed.

    He (Fadnavis) does not speak on the issue of the state, he only speaks on the Shiv Sena.

    “When Fadnavis was going and breaking Dahi Handis in Mumbai, thus competing with the Shiv Sena, at the same time threat messages were received from terrorists that they would launch an attack like 26/11,” the editorial said.

    Who does not want festivals like Dahi Handi, but if life is there, anything can be achieved, it said.

    In the last two years, restrictions were imposed on festivals by Prime Minister Narendra Modi because of COVID-19, the editorial said.

    “Today you say there are no restrictions on festivals. We improved the health of Maharashtra by making it COVID-free and gave the state to you,” it said.

    On the day of Dahi Handi, 1,500 COVID-19 cases were reported, the editorial said, but did not specify where those infections were recorded.

    PUNE: The Shiv Sena on Tuesday said Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis’s claim of working to fulfil the “dream” of Sena founder Balasaheb Thackeray was a ploy to break the Marathi unity in Mumbai where civic polls are due.

    “Why are you seeking votes in the name of Balasaheb? Has your Modi era, Modi wave started receding?” an editorial in the Sena mouthpiece ‘Saamana’ asked.

    In June this year, Sena MLA Eknath Shinde and 39 other legislators rebelled against the party leadership, leading to the collapse of the Uddhav Thackeray-led Maharashtra government.

    Shinde was then sworn in as the chief minister on June 30 along with BJP leader Fadnavis as his deputy.

    The editorial said leaders like Devendra Fadnavis of the BJP are now embracing the “dream of Balasaheb”, but they did not remember the late Sena supremo while snapping ties with the party in 2014.

    They did not remember the dreams of Balasaheb while going back on the word of chief ministerial post to the Shiv Sena in 2019, it said.

    “Fadnavis’s words are akin to the deceitful invitation of a fox, and people of Mumbai and Thane should be cautious,” the Marathi daily said.

    “The language of ‘dream of Balasaheb’ used by the BJP is nothing but a ploy to break the Marathi unity in Mumbai and for that they are injuring the Shiv Sena,” it claimed.

    The people who forgot (BJP veterans) Lal Krishna Advani, Atal Bihar Vajpayee, will they fulfil the dreams of Balasaheb? it asked.

    Today’s Bharatiya Janata Party is “not the real BJP”, the editorial claimed and asked if the party, which belonged to Vajpayee and Advani, really exists.

    “The BJP of Vajpayee was all about keeping the promise but it is not there now and that is why we left such BJP (alliance) and set out on a different path of “Hindutva”.

    “Our political stand is still the same. We are Hindutvawadi, but we are not the BJP’s slave. We are honest servants of Maharashtra, not the ‘charandas’ (servant) of Delhi,” the Sena said.

    ALSO READ | Uddhav vs Shinde: SC refers petitions filed by rival Shiv Sena factions to constitution bench

    Further hitting out at Fadnavis, it said he is continuously chanting the name of Balasaheb.

    “He is saying give us votes in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation elections and we (BJP) will fulfil Balasaheb’s dreams. What is this sham? Which dream of Balsaheb are you going to fulfil?” it asked.

    “Your dream of creating a split in the Shiv Sena, was it the dream of Balasaheb?”, it asked.

    Fadnavis was “wise and profound” but that status is now denigrated in the company of the Eknath Shinde faction, it claimed.

    He (Fadnavis) does not speak on the issue of the state, he only speaks on the Shiv Sena.

    “When Fadnavis was going and breaking Dahi Handis in Mumbai, thus competing with the Shiv Sena, at the same time threat messages were received from terrorists that they would launch an attack like 26/11,” the editorial said.

    Who does not want festivals like Dahi Handi, but if life is there, anything can be achieved, it said.

    In the last two years, restrictions were imposed on festivals by Prime Minister Narendra Modi because of COVID-19, the editorial said.

    “Today you say there are no restrictions on festivals. We improved the health of Maharashtra by making it COVID-free and gave the state to you,” it said.

    On the day of Dahi Handi, 1,500 COVID-19 cases were reported, the editorial said, but did not specify where those infections were recorded.

  • ‘Everyone knows who the real CM is’: Aaditya Thackeray’s dig at Eknath Shinde

    By PTI

    MUMBAI: In a searing attack on the Eknath Shinde-led government in Maharashtra, Shiv Sena leader Aaditya Thackeray on Wednesday said everyone knows who is the “real chief minister”, apparently alluding to the clout of Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis of the BJP in the new dispensation.

    Taking a dig at the cabinet expansion, Aaditya Thackeray said the ministerial team has neither heard Mumbai’s voice nor the voice of women or Independent MLAs.

    Chief Minister Eknath Shinde last week expanded his Cabinet, inducting nine MLAs each of the rebel Shiv Sena camp and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which is supporting his government.

    No woman legislator or Independent was inducted in the Cabinet whose strength is now 20.

    The first 14 to 15 MLAs who aligned with Shinde when he revolted against the Shiv Sena leadership in June have not found a place in the Cabinet.

    “So there is no place for loyalty,” Aaditya Thackeray, a former minister, mocked while talking to reporters outside the state legislature.

    “Everyone now knows who the real chief minister is,” he said in an apparent reference to Fadnavis, who holds home, finance and a host of other key portfolios.

    Post the expansion, the Shiv Sena faction led by party president Uddhav Thackeray had criticised the Shinde government, saying crucial portfolios have been allocated to the BJP.

    “Independents have not got any place. Women have not got any place in the Cabinet nor has Mumbai,” said the junior Thackeray.

    The lone Cabinet minister from the metropolis is Mangal Prabhat Lodha, the BJP MLA from Malabar Hill in south Mumbai.

    Nearly 10 independent MLAs had backed Shinde after he rebelled against the party.

    Aaditya Thackeray said those who have got a place in the Cabinet have been “downgraded”, a reference to rebel Sena MLAs who have got portfolios considered lightweight.

    Attacking the 40 rebel Sena MLAs, he said, “They stabbed a kind person (Uddhav Thackeray) in the back. Doors are open for those who want to come back, but those who want to stay there must quit as MLA.”

    The junior Thackeray has been consistently assailing the rebels since the June revolt, branding them as ‘gaddars’ (traitors).

    The rebellion in the Shiv Sena had led to the collapse of the three-party Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government in June-end.

    MUMBAI: In a searing attack on the Eknath Shinde-led government in Maharashtra, Shiv Sena leader Aaditya Thackeray on Wednesday said everyone knows who is the “real chief minister”, apparently alluding to the clout of Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis of the BJP in the new dispensation.

    Taking a dig at the cabinet expansion, Aaditya Thackeray said the ministerial team has neither heard Mumbai’s voice nor the voice of women or Independent MLAs.

    Chief Minister Eknath Shinde last week expanded his Cabinet, inducting nine MLAs each of the rebel Shiv Sena camp and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which is supporting his government.

    No woman legislator or Independent was inducted in the Cabinet whose strength is now 20.

    The first 14 to 15 MLAs who aligned with Shinde when he revolted against the Shiv Sena leadership in June have not found a place in the Cabinet.

    “So there is no place for loyalty,” Aaditya Thackeray, a former minister, mocked while talking to reporters outside the state legislature.

    “Everyone now knows who the real chief minister is,” he said in an apparent reference to Fadnavis, who holds home, finance and a host of other key portfolios.

    Post the expansion, the Shiv Sena faction led by party president Uddhav Thackeray had criticised the Shinde government, saying crucial portfolios have been allocated to the BJP.

    “Independents have not got any place. Women have not got any place in the Cabinet nor has Mumbai,” said the junior Thackeray.

    The lone Cabinet minister from the metropolis is Mangal Prabhat Lodha, the BJP MLA from Malabar Hill in south Mumbai.

    Nearly 10 independent MLAs had backed Shinde after he rebelled against the party.

    Aaditya Thackeray said those who have got a place in the Cabinet have been “downgraded”, a reference to rebel Sena MLAs who have got portfolios considered lightweight.

    Attacking the 40 rebel Sena MLAs, he said, “They stabbed a kind person (Uddhav Thackeray) in the back. Doors are open for those who want to come back, but those who want to stay there must quit as MLA.”

    The junior Thackeray has been consistently assailing the rebels since the June revolt, branding them as ‘gaddars’ (traitors).

    The rebellion in the Shiv Sena had led to the collapse of the three-party Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government in June-end.

  • Maharashtra cabinet: Fadnavis gets Home; Shinde to handle Urban Development

    By PTI

    MUMBAI: Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Sunday allocated the crucial Home portfolio to Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis.

    Shinde, who expanded his two-member cabinet on August 9 by inducting 18 ministers, has kept the Urban Development portfolio with himself.

    A statement from the Chief Minister’s Office said Fadnavis will also handle the Finance and Planning ministry, and BJP minister Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil will be the new Revenue minister.

    BJP minister Sudhir Mungantiwar has been made the Forest minister, a portfolio he handled earlier.

    Former state BJP president Chandrakant Patil is the new minister for higher and technical education. He will also look after parliamentary affairs.

    From the Shinde-led group of Shiv Sena rebels, Deepak Kesarkar is the new minister for school education, while Abdul Sattar has been given the Agriculture portfolio.

    READ HERE | ‘No respect for women’: NCP’s Supriya Sule slams Shinde’s ‘all-male’ Cabinet

    MUMBAI: Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Sunday allocated the crucial Home portfolio to Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis.

    Shinde, who expanded his two-member cabinet on August 9 by inducting 18 ministers, has kept the Urban Development portfolio with himself.

    A statement from the Chief Minister’s Office said Fadnavis will also handle the Finance and Planning ministry, and BJP minister Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil will be the new Revenue minister.

    BJP minister Sudhir Mungantiwar has been made the Forest minister, a portfolio he handled earlier.

    Former state BJP president Chandrakant Patil is the new minister for higher and technical education. He will also look after parliamentary affairs.

    From the Shinde-led group of Shiv Sena rebels, Deepak Kesarkar is the new minister for school education, while Abdul Sattar has been given the Agriculture portfolio.

    READ HERE | ‘No respect for women’: NCP’s Supriya Sule slams Shinde’s ‘all-male’ Cabinet

  • Maharashtra cabinet: BJP gets key ministries, Fadnavis gets Home and Finance; Shinde to handle Urban Development

    By PTI

    MUMBAI: Five days after the induction of 18 ministers into his cabinet, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Sunday distributed portfolios, with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) getting several key ministries, including the Home and Finance that will be handled by Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis.

    Shinde kept Urban Development and 11 other ministries with himself.

    Shinde, whose rebellion against the Shiv Sena leadership had led to the collapse of the Uddhav Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government, had taken oath as the chief minister on June 30 with the support of the BJP.

    Fadnavis was sworn in as his deputy.

    In addition to Home and Finance and Planning, Fadnavis will also handle Law and Judiciary, Water Resources, Housing, Energy and Protocol portfolios.

    Another important portfolio – the Revenue Department – has been given to BJP leader Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil, who had quit the Congress a few months before the 2019 Assembly elections to join the saffron party.

    Shinde had expanded his two-member ministry on Tuesday, 41 days after taking oath as the chief minister by inducting 18 ministers – nine each from his rebel Shiv Sena group and the BJP.

    However, the list did not include any woman.

    READ HERE | ‘No respect for women’: NCP’s Supriya Sule slams Shinde’s ‘all-male’ Cabinet

    Apart from the Urban Development Department, CM Shinde has kept with himself General Administration Department, Public Works Department (public sector undertakings), Information and Public Relations, Transport, Marketing, Social Justice, Disaster Management, Relief and Rehabilitation, Soil and Water Conservation, Environment and Climate Change and Minority Development.

    From the BJP’s side Chandrakant Patil, Sudhir Mungantiwar, Girish Mahajan, Vijaykumar Gavit, Suresh Khade, Ravindra Chavan, Atul Save and Mangal Prabhat Lodha were inducted as ministers.

    Chandrakant Patil, considered close to Union Home Minister Amit Shah, has been allocated Higher and Technical Education, Textile and Parliamentary Affairs ministries.

    In the past, he had handled PWD and Cooperation ministries.

    Mungantiwar has been allocated Forest, Fisheries Development and Cultural Affairs portfolios.

    During his 2014-19 stint, he had headed Finance and Planning as well as Forest ministries.

    Atul Save has been given Cooperation and OBC Welfare departments, while Ravindra Chavan has got PWD and Food and Civil Supplies and Consumer Protection ministries.

    Both of them were Minister of State for a brief period in the past.

    Former Mumbai BJP chief Mangal Prabhat Lodha has got Tourism Development, Skill Development and Women and Child Development ministries.

    Fadnavis’ close confidant Girish Mahajan has been given the responsibility of Rural Development and Panchayati Raj, Medical Education and Sport and Youth development.

    Dr Vijaykumar Gavit has been given Tribal Development department, while BJP MLA from western Maharashtra, Suresh Khade has been given the responsibility of Labour ministry.

    From the Shinde-led group of Shiv Sena rebels, Deepak Kesarkar is the new minister for School Education.

    Gulabrao Patil has retained Water Supply and Sanitation department, while Dada Bhuse, who previously held Agriculture, will now handle Ports and Mining.

    Abdul Sattar has been given Agriculture department.

    Uday Samant, who was previously the Higher and Technical Education minister, has been given the Industries department.

    A controversial leader from the Shinde camp, Sanjay Rathod, will handle Food and Drugs Department.

    Rathod, who was the forest minister when Uddhav Thackeray was the chief minister, was forced to resign after BJP leaders blamed him for a woman’s suicide.

    While Tanaji Sawant has been given the responsibility of Public Health and Family Welfare department, Shambhuraj Desai will handle the Excise department, and Sandipan Bhumre Employment Guarantee Scheme and Horticulture ministries.

    Meanwhile, Fadnavis on Sunday said the BJP and the Shinde camp can exchange some portfolios ahead of the next cabinet expansion if needed.

    “There is no dispute between the BJP and CM Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena over the portfolio distribution.

    If required, we can exchange some portfolios ahead of the next cabinet expansion,” said Fadnavis.

    He was responding to a query about himself and Shinde holding several portfolios among themselves.

    Maharashtra cabinet’s maximum allowed strength is 43.

    MUMBAI: Five days after the induction of 18 ministers into his cabinet, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Sunday distributed portfolios, with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) getting several key ministries, including the Home and Finance that will be handled by Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis.

    Shinde kept Urban Development and 11 other ministries with himself.

    Shinde, whose rebellion against the Shiv Sena leadership had led to the collapse of the Uddhav Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government, had taken oath as the chief minister on June 30 with the support of the BJP.

    Fadnavis was sworn in as his deputy.

    In addition to Home and Finance and Planning, Fadnavis will also handle Law and Judiciary, Water Resources, Housing, Energy and Protocol portfolios.

    Another important portfolio – the Revenue Department – has been given to BJP leader Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil, who had quit the Congress a few months before the 2019 Assembly elections to join the saffron party.

    Shinde had expanded his two-member ministry on Tuesday, 41 days after taking oath as the chief minister by inducting 18 ministers – nine each from his rebel Shiv Sena group and the BJP.

    However, the list did not include any woman.

    READ HERE | ‘No respect for women’: NCP’s Supriya Sule slams Shinde’s ‘all-male’ Cabinet

    Apart from the Urban Development Department, CM Shinde has kept with himself General Administration Department, Public Works Department (public sector undertakings), Information and Public Relations, Transport, Marketing, Social Justice, Disaster Management, Relief and Rehabilitation, Soil and Water Conservation, Environment and Climate Change and Minority Development.

    From the BJP’s side Chandrakant Patil, Sudhir Mungantiwar, Girish Mahajan, Vijaykumar Gavit, Suresh Khade, Ravindra Chavan, Atul Save and Mangal Prabhat Lodha were inducted as ministers.

    Chandrakant Patil, considered close to Union Home Minister Amit Shah, has been allocated Higher and Technical Education, Textile and Parliamentary Affairs ministries.

    In the past, he had handled PWD and Cooperation ministries.

    Mungantiwar has been allocated Forest, Fisheries Development and Cultural Affairs portfolios.

    During his 2014-19 stint, he had headed Finance and Planning as well as Forest ministries.

    Atul Save has been given Cooperation and OBC Welfare departments, while Ravindra Chavan has got PWD and Food and Civil Supplies and Consumer Protection ministries.

    Both of them were Minister of State for a brief period in the past.

    Former Mumbai BJP chief Mangal Prabhat Lodha has got Tourism Development, Skill Development and Women and Child Development ministries.

    Fadnavis’ close confidant Girish Mahajan has been given the responsibility of Rural Development and Panchayati Raj, Medical Education and Sport and Youth development.

    Dr Vijaykumar Gavit has been given Tribal Development department, while BJP MLA from western Maharashtra, Suresh Khade has been given the responsibility of Labour ministry.

    From the Shinde-led group of Shiv Sena rebels, Deepak Kesarkar is the new minister for School Education.

    Gulabrao Patil has retained Water Supply and Sanitation department, while Dada Bhuse, who previously held Agriculture, will now handle Ports and Mining.

    Abdul Sattar has been given Agriculture department.

    Uday Samant, who was previously the Higher and Technical Education minister, has been given the Industries department.

    A controversial leader from the Shinde camp, Sanjay Rathod, will handle Food and Drugs Department.

    Rathod, who was the forest minister when Uddhav Thackeray was the chief minister, was forced to resign after BJP leaders blamed him for a woman’s suicide.

    While Tanaji Sawant has been given the responsibility of Public Health and Family Welfare department, Shambhuraj Desai will handle the Excise department, and Sandipan Bhumre Employment Guarantee Scheme and Horticulture ministries.

    Meanwhile, Fadnavis on Sunday said the BJP and the Shinde camp can exchange some portfolios ahead of the next cabinet expansion if needed.

    “There is no dispute between the BJP and CM Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena over the portfolio distribution.

    If required, we can exchange some portfolios ahead of the next cabinet expansion,” said Fadnavis.

    He was responding to a query about himself and Shinde holding several portfolios among themselves.

    Maharashtra cabinet’s maximum allowed strength is 43.

  • Pawar accuses BJP of finishing off regional allies; Fadnavis hits back

    By PTI

    PUNE: NCP chief Sharad Pawar on Wednesday accused the Bharatiya Janata Party of finishing off its regional allies gradually, and supported Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s decision to snap ties with the BJP.

    Speaking to reporters in Baramati town of Maharashtra’s Pune district, Pawar claimed the BJP was planning how to weaken the Shiv Sena and create a division in the party.

    Pawar’s party was a constituent of the previous Shiv Sena-led Maharashtra government, which collapsed in June this year following a revolt by Sena MLA Eknath Shinde and 39 other legislators.

    Nitish Kumar had on Tuesday pulled the plug on his party JD(U)’s alliance with the BJP and resigned, and followed it up by staking claim to form a new government in Bihar with support of the opposition Grand Alliance.

    Notably, BJP national president J P Nadda recently said in the times to come only an ideology-driven party like the BJP will survive, while others ruled by families will perish.

    Pawar on Wednesday claimed that “the BJP national president in his address said regional parties do not have a future and they will not exist. He said it is only their party which will exist in the country.”

    “From this statement, one thing is clear, which was also the complaint of Nitish Kumar, that the BJP finishes off its allies gradually,” the NCP president said.

    Citing an example, Pawar said a party like the Akali Dal was with them (BJP).

    “Its leader Prakash Singh Badal was with them, but today the party is nearly finished in Punjab,” he said.

    In Maharashtra, the Shiv Sena and BJP were together for several years, he pointed out.

    “Today, the BJP is planning how the Shiv Sena can be weakened by creating a division in the party, and (present Maharashtra CM) Eknath Shinde and others helped,” he added.

    In doing this, the Shiv Sena was attacked by the party which was once its ally, he said.

    A similar picture was being seen in Bihar.

    Nitish Kumar, of the JD(U), and the BJP contested the last Assembly elections together, he said.

    “One more speciality of the BJP is that it joins hands with a regional party at the time of elections, but ensures the ally wins fewer seats. It happened in Maharashtra also,” Pawar claimed.

    When a similar picture was being witnessed in Bihar, the CM of the state got cautious well in advance and took the decision to snap ties with the BJP, he said.

    “No matter how much BJP leaders criticise Nitish Kumar, but he has taken a wise step. He took the decision anticipating the crisis the BJP was planning to bring on. I think he took a wise decision for his state and party,” Pawar said.

    Meanwhile, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Devendra Fadnavis on Wednesday took a swipe at Sharad Pawar, saying that there was “something else” that was hurting more to the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) president.

    Fadnavis made the comment in the wake of Pawar’s criticism of the BJP, in which he accused it of finishing off its regional allies gradually.

    Pawar also said that the BJP was planning to weaken the Shiv Sena and create a division in the party.

    “There is something else that hurts Pawar more. Everyone knows it,” Fadnavis told reporters in Thane.

    Pawar’s party was a constituent of the previous Shiv Sena-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government in Maharashtra, which collapsed in June this year following a revolt by Sena MLA Eknath Shinde and 39 other legislators.

    Fadnavis said, “In the last Bihar Assembly elections, the BJP had won more seats that the JD(U), but still Nitish Kumar was made chief minister. It is the BJP that takes care of its allies.”

    “If we are not in power in Bihar (now), we would be there tomorrow for sure,” he added.

    JD(U) leader Nitish Kumar on Wednesday took oath as Bihar chief minister for the eighth time, while RJD’s Tejashwi Yadav was administered the oath of office as deputy chief minister.

    The ceremony took place a day after Kumar snapped ties with the BJP-led NDA and joined hands with the RJD to form a ‘Mahagathbandhan’ government.

    On the expansion of the Shinde-led cabinet in Maharashtra, Fadnavis said, “There has already been a lot of speculation about the cabinet expansion in media already. But the speculation is going to be completely false. Once the portfolios are allocated, you will realise it.”

    A day earlier, CM Shinde expanded his cabinet, 41 days after taking the oath of office.

    A total of 18 MLAs, including nine each from the Shinde faction of Shiv Sena and the BJP, took oath as the cabinet ministers.

    PUNE: NCP chief Sharad Pawar on Wednesday accused the Bharatiya Janata Party of finishing off its regional allies gradually, and supported Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s decision to snap ties with the BJP.

    Speaking to reporters in Baramati town of Maharashtra’s Pune district, Pawar claimed the BJP was planning how to weaken the Shiv Sena and create a division in the party.

    Pawar’s party was a constituent of the previous Shiv Sena-led Maharashtra government, which collapsed in June this year following a revolt by Sena MLA Eknath Shinde and 39 other legislators.

    Nitish Kumar had on Tuesday pulled the plug on his party JD(U)’s alliance with the BJP and resigned, and followed it up by staking claim to form a new government in Bihar with support of the opposition Grand Alliance.

    Notably, BJP national president J P Nadda recently said in the times to come only an ideology-driven party like the BJP will survive, while others ruled by families will perish.

    Pawar on Wednesday claimed that “the BJP national president in his address said regional parties do not have a future and they will not exist. He said it is only their party which will exist in the country.”

    “From this statement, one thing is clear, which was also the complaint of Nitish Kumar, that the BJP finishes off its allies gradually,” the NCP president said.

    Citing an example, Pawar said a party like the Akali Dal was with them (BJP).

    “Its leader Prakash Singh Badal was with them, but today the party is nearly finished in Punjab,” he said.

    In Maharashtra, the Shiv Sena and BJP were together for several years, he pointed out.

    “Today, the BJP is planning how the Shiv Sena can be weakened by creating a division in the party, and (present Maharashtra CM) Eknath Shinde and others helped,” he added.

    In doing this, the Shiv Sena was attacked by the party which was once its ally, he said.

    A similar picture was being seen in Bihar.

    Nitish Kumar, of the JD(U), and the BJP contested the last Assembly elections together, he said.

    “One more speciality of the BJP is that it joins hands with a regional party at the time of elections, but ensures the ally wins fewer seats. It happened in Maharashtra also,” Pawar claimed.

    When a similar picture was being witnessed in Bihar, the CM of the state got cautious well in advance and took the decision to snap ties with the BJP, he said.

    “No matter how much BJP leaders criticise Nitish Kumar, but he has taken a wise step. He took the decision anticipating the crisis the BJP was planning to bring on. I think he took a wise decision for his state and party,” Pawar said.

    Meanwhile, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Devendra Fadnavis on Wednesday took a swipe at Sharad Pawar, saying that there was “something else” that was hurting more to the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) president.

    Fadnavis made the comment in the wake of Pawar’s criticism of the BJP, in which he accused it of finishing off its regional allies gradually.

    Pawar also said that the BJP was planning to weaken the Shiv Sena and create a division in the party.

    “There is something else that hurts Pawar more. Everyone knows it,” Fadnavis told reporters in Thane.

    Pawar’s party was a constituent of the previous Shiv Sena-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government in Maharashtra, which collapsed in June this year following a revolt by Sena MLA Eknath Shinde and 39 other legislators.

    Fadnavis said, “In the last Bihar Assembly elections, the BJP had won more seats that the JD(U), but still Nitish Kumar was made chief minister. It is the BJP that takes care of its allies.”

    “If we are not in power in Bihar (now), we would be there tomorrow for sure,” he added.

    JD(U) leader Nitish Kumar on Wednesday took oath as Bihar chief minister for the eighth time, while RJD’s Tejashwi Yadav was administered the oath of office as deputy chief minister.

    The ceremony took place a day after Kumar snapped ties with the BJP-led NDA and joined hands with the RJD to form a ‘Mahagathbandhan’ government.

    On the expansion of the Shinde-led cabinet in Maharashtra, Fadnavis said, “There has already been a lot of speculation about the cabinet expansion in media already. But the speculation is going to be completely false. Once the portfolios are allocated, you will realise it.”

    A day earlier, CM Shinde expanded his cabinet, 41 days after taking the oath of office.

    A total of 18 MLAs, including nine each from the Shinde faction of Shiv Sena and the BJP, took oath as the cabinet ministers.