News Analysis India

Tag: Maharashtra Congress

  • Rahul Gandhi gives nod to Maharashtra Congress chief Nana Patole to fight local body elections solo

    Express News Service
    MUMBAI: After meeting with Congress leaders in Delhi, Maharashtra Congress president Nana Patole said that the Congress will fight the upcoming local body and other elections on its own and they will not make an alliance with any political front.

    Patole, who is a close confidante of Rahul Gandhi, said that Rahul has given the green signal to him to contest the local body and other elections on its own. The senior party leader said that this decision of contesting solo will not have any impact on the incumbent Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance as they will continue to share the power and work to expand the base of the party.

    “We had a very good meeting with our leader Rahul Gandhi. We discussed various issues to strengthen the party at every nook and corner and so we decided that though the Congress party will remain with Maha Vikas Aghadi in Maharashtra, it contest the upcoming elections on its own only,” Patole said.

    Patole’s statement is very significant because he was the first to declare and consistently make statements of Congress contesting solo the future elections. However, his own party leaders rubbished his claim till Rahul Gandhi himself gave the green signal for solo elections.

    Earlier, NCP chief Sharad Pawar was angry with Patole’s claim of Congress fighting the local body elections solo. When the AICC’s Maharashtra in-charge Hanumanthagowda K Patil and state ministers Balasaheb Thorat and Ashok Chavan went to meet Pawar at his residence in Mumbai, Pawar asked these leaders whether the Congress high command has givenPatole the rights to to take such decisions.

    Pawar also said that if this is the stand of the Congress high command, then he will also prepare for his party. Patole said that the party got ditched in 2014 when NCP broke the alliance at the eleventh hour and hence, to avoid a similiar mistake, he has been preparing his party for the solo contest from today only.

  • Congress leaders cycle to meet Maharashtra Governor; submit memorandum on Centre’s ‘anti-people’ policies 

    By PTI
    MUMBAI: A delegation of leaders from the Maharashtra Congress called on Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari on Thursday to submit a memorandum highlighting the problems faced by the common man because of the “anti-people” and “anti-farmer” policies of the Central government.

    Congress leaders, who were part of the delegation led by state unit president Nana Patole, cycled from Hanging Gardens in Malabar Hill to Raj Bhavan to register their protest against the hike in fuel prices.

    In its memorandum, the Congress stated that at least 98,000 jobs were lost and the income of 97 per cent of families was reduced during the COVID-19 pandemic.

    “When people were struggling to survive, the Central government hiked the prices of fuel, LPG cylinders, edible oil and food grains,” it said.

    The party went on to say that despite the threat of COVID-19, the vaccination policy has been a failure, and many centres had to be shut down in Maharashtra due to shortage of vaccine doses.

    Seeking the governor’s intervention, the party claimed that farmers have been protesting against the Centre’s farm laws only to be ignored by the government, and said that the OBC and Maratha quota issues are also in the Union government’s jurisdiction.

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

    By PTI
    MUMBAI: The Maharashtra government has appointed a high-level committee headed by state DGP Sanjay Pandey to probe the phone-tapping allegations levelled by state Congress chief Nana Patole.

    State intelligence department commissioner and additional police commissioner (special branch) will be part of this three-member panel.

    During the two-day monsoon session of the state legislature held earlier this week, Home Minister Dilip Walse Patil had made the announcement about setting up a high-level inquiry while speaking in the Legislative Assembly.

    Patole has claimed that his phone was tapped during 2016-17 when he was a Member of Parliament (MP) and when the state government was headed by Devendra Fadnavis.

    He said his phone was tapped on the pretext that it belonged to drug-peddler Amjad Khan.

    The government order issued on Friday evening said the committee would probe the case and submit its report to the legislature in three months.

    The terms and reference for the committee is to scrutinise the cases of phone-tapping between 2015 and 2019 and find out whether there was any political motive.

    “If the phone surveillance was politically motivated, action will be taken,” the order said.

    When Patole raised the issue in the House, several members supported the need for a high-level probe.

    Patole represents Sakoli Assembly segment in Bhandara district of Vidarbha region.

    He had earlier quit the Congress and won the 2014 Lok Sabha election on the BJP’s ticket.

    However, he left the saffron party in 2017 citing differences with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Fadnavis, and returned to the Congress.

  • Congress to go solo in future polls in Maharashtra

    Express News Service
    MUMBAI: The Congress’s strained ties with its allies in Maharashtra has made the party decide to go solo in future elections while the other two partners in the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), the NCP and the Shiv Sena, are planning to contest the next local body, Lok Sabha and assembly polls together. 

    Maharashtra Congress president Nana Patole said they will remain alliance partners in MVA, but henceforth the party will contest all elections on its own. “We will not enter into alliances with either the NCP or the Shiv Sena. We have to expand the party base by contesting all seats in all elections.

    ALSO READ | ‘Are there plans for mid-term polls?’: Shiv Sena after Congress talk of going solo in 2024

    The Congress has a solid base and that will help make the party the number one political force in the state once again. I am confident that the next chief minister of Maharashtra will be from the Congress only,” Patole said. The Congress observer for Maharashtra H K Patil was in Mumbai on Friday to consult the party’s ministers and other leaders to decide the future strategy.

    “Patil wants to know whether the Congress is capable of fighting alone and if not, then what are the issues. He asked them to address these issues and make the party a dominant political force in the state under the leadership of Patole,” said a source. On the other hand, NCP chief Sharad Pawar said his party and the Shiv Sena will contest the next elections together. Amid buzz of the BJP trying to woo back the Sena, Pawar also reiterated that the MVA government will survive for five years.

    “The BJP is ready to comprise in Maharashtra after losing power in Bengal. Earlier, it was adamant on the CM’s post but it’s ready to comprise now…However, Shiv Sena leadership had not made any commitment,” said a source.

  • Maharashtra Congress to give nearly Rs 2 crore for COVID vaccination drive

    By PTI

    MUMBAI: The Maharashtra Congress on Thursday said it will donate nearly Rs 2 crore to the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund (CMRF) to contribute towards the free COVID-19 vaccination drive for people in the age group of 18 to 44.

    Speaking to reporters here, state Revenue Minister and senior Congress leader Balasaheb Thorat said he will donate a year’s salary, while other Congress MLAs will contribute a month’s salary to the CMRF.

    “My one year’s salary and a month’s salary of all Congress MLAs will be donated to the CMRF. This will come up to Rs 2 crore,” he said, adding that the Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee will also contribute Rs 5 lakh.

    Apart from this, the vaccination cost of 5,000 employees of Sangamner-based Amrut Group of Industries, which is headed by him, will be donated to the CMRF, the minister said.

    The COVID-19 crisis has taken a serious turn in the country and the state, he said.

    The best preventive measure against the virus is to vaccinate all citizens in a time-bound manner, Thorat said.

    Many vaccination campaigns were carried out during the Congress rule at the Centre, and the Congress government did not worry about profit or loss and gave free vaccines to people by prioritising their health, he said, accusing the Narendra Modi government of running away from its responsibility.

    The Maharashtra government on Wednesday announced its decision to inoculate citizens in the age group of 18 to 44 against COVID-19 for free at state-run vaccination centres.

    The state will have to bear an expenditure of Rs 6,500 crore to vaccinate 5.71 crore citizens in this age group.

  • Maharashtra Congress MLA Raosaheb Antapurkar dies due to post-COVID complications

    By PTI
    MUMBAI: Maharashtra Congress MLA Raosaheb Antapurkar died while undergoing treatment for post-COVID complications at a hospital here, party sources said on Saturday.

    Antapurkar, who was 64, died at Bombay Hospital on Friday night, they said.

    He suffered a multi organ failure and was on ventilator since April 1.

    Antapurkar was a two-time MLA from Deglurassembly constituency in Nanded district.

    Party sources said that the legislator had tested positive for COVID-19 on March 19 and was initially admitted to a hospital in Nanded, before being shifted to Bombay Hospital on March 22.

    HisCOVID-19 report was negative around March 28, but he continued to remain in the ICU.

    His lungs and kidneys were infected, the sources said.

    His funeral will take place in his native Antapur village in Nanded district on Saturday.

    An engineer by profession, Antapurkar gave up his job to join the Congress and won the 2009 assembly polls from Deglur.

    He lost in 2014, but again won from the same seat in 2019.

    He is survived by his mother, wife, two married daughters and a son.

    Maharashtra minister and Congress leader Ashok Chavan and state Congress chief Nana Patole expressed grief over his death.

    In November last year, Bharat Bhalke, an NCP MLA from Pandharpur-Mangalvedha constituency in Solapur district, died due to post-COVID complications.

  • Maharashtra: Congress Ministers discuss Anil Deshmukh controversy with AICC secretary HK Patil

    By PTI
    MUMBAI: Congress ministers in the MVA government on Friday discussed the allegations of corruption against Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh in a meeting with AICC in-charge for the state HK Patil, sources said.

    Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut’s repeated remarks that NCP supremo Sharad Pawar should take over as UPA chairperson also came up during the discussion, sources added.

    The meeting in Mumbai with Patil, an All India Congress Committee secretary, was held for discussing the political situation in the state, sources said.

    “They talked about how the state government’s image is being tarnished due to the allegations of corruption against NCP leader Deshmukh and how our party is getting maligned unnecessarily,” said a Congress leader.

    Former Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh alleged last month that Deshmukh had asked police officials to collect Rs 100 crore a month from bars and hotels, an allegations the latter denied.

    “The view in the meeting was that the NCP should have handled the Deshmukh issue in a better way,” the leader added.

    Congress ministers also complained about Sena spokesperson Sanjay Raut repeatedly stating that Pawar be made UPA chairperson by replacing Congress president Sonia Gandhi.

    The issue of development funds for constituencies of Congress ministers not being disbursed in time also came up, sources said.

    The Congress has 12 ministers in the Shiv Sena-led coalition government.

  • Letter row: Mumbai top cop Param Bir Singh may be under pressure from central agencies, says Congress

    By PTI
    MUMBAI: Accusing the BJP of trying to destabilise the Maharashtra government, the Congress on Sunday said former Mumbai police chief Param Bir Singh, who levelled allegations of corruption against state home minister Anil Deshmukh, might be under pressure of Central agencies.

    Addressing a press conference, Maharashtra Congress spokesman Sachin Sawant said it was not for the first time in India that a serving officer raised allegations against those in power.

    Days after he was shunted as Mumbai police commissioner, Singh wrote a letter to Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray claiming Deshmukh, a senior NCP leader, had asked Sachin Waze and other police officers to collect Rs 100 crore monthly from bars and hotels in Mumbai.

    Deshmukh had denied allegations against him as baseless.

    Questioning Singh’s claims, Sawant said, “Deshmukh was in hospital after he tested positive for coronavirus in February. I had had online interactions with Deshmukh on two occasions when he was indisposed. If Singh’s allegations are believed to be true then why did he wait till March and till he was transferred, to raise them”.

    He said Singh could be under pressure of Central agencies since his close aide (Waze) is in the NIA custody.

    “Singh’s allegations raise several questions. All this is scripted. How leaders of BJP gave sound bytes to news channels minutes after Singh’s letter became public,” he alleged.

    Singh was shunted out as Mumbai police commissioner in the midst of investigation by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) into recovery of an explosives-laden vehicle which was found parked outside the south Mumbai residence of industrialist Mukesh Ambani last month.

    The NIA had arrested the assistant inspector of Mumbai Police, Sachin Waze, in the case.

    The federal agency is also probing the alleged murder of Thane-based businessman Mansukh Hiran who was in possession of the SUV found outside Ambani’s residence, ‘Antilia’.

     

  • Congress pitch for Muslim quota could hurt Shiv Sena

    Express News Service
    MUMBAI: The Maharashtra Congress resolution on Tuesday demanding reservations for the Muslims in education and government jobs is likely to put its ruling ally, the Shiv Sena, in a spot of bother.

    Sources in the Shiv Sena asserted that being a staunch Hindutva party, any capitulation to the Congress demand could hurt its electoral prospect in the future.

    “Muslim reservations can turn into a bone of contention for the Maha Vikas Aghadi partners. However, we are confident that Uddhav Thackeray will handle the situations skillfully as he is doing in other cases,” a Sena insider said.

    On his part, Maharashtra Congress president Nana Patole maintained that the party is committed to development and welfare of all communities.  

    “During the Congress rule, we gave Maratha and Muslim quota, but later Devendra Fadnavis cancelled the Muslim reservation. Since Congress is the partner in Maha Vikas Aghadi, we want to fulfil our promise to the community,” said Patole.

    What could make the situation delicate for Uddhav is that the NCP — the third ally in the ruling MVA alliance — is also not openly against the Muslim quota. Earlier, NCP minister Nawab Malik had also sought quota under the common minimum agenda.

    “While preparing the agenda, we had discussed the Muslim reservations where no MVA party had raised objections,” he had said. 

  • BJP running fake news factory on social media: Maharashtra Congress president Nana Patole

    By PTI
    MUMBAI: Maharashtra Congress president Nana Patole on Thursday accused the BJP of running a “fake news factory” on social media and said his party will demolish the same by highlighting facts.

    The BJP hit back at the Congress saying that since the latter has not done any good work, it has nothing to showcase on social media.

    Patole said the BJP was using social media to spread misinformation and create a divide in the society, and added that his party will give a fitting reply to such attempts.

    “The BJP has a fake news factory on social media, which the Congress will demolish by being positive and highlighting facts,” the former Assembly Speaker said at the launch of the party’s social media outreach.

    The Congress’ digital reach will be expanded to villages, he said, adding that two lakh workers will be added to its social media network in the next one month.

    The Congress leader further alleged that Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari was not giving his approval to the nomination of 12 names to the legislative council from the Governor’s quota because of pressure from the BJP’s top leadership.

    When asked about Patole’s remarks, state BJP spokesperson Keshav Upadhye said, “Since the Congress has not done any good work, it lacks content to showcase on social media.”

    Reacting to the charge that the BJP runs a fake new factory, he said, “Such allegations are levelled when somebody faces failure.”