MUMBAI: The political rivalry between BJP minister Ganesh Naik and deputy chief minister Eknath Shinde, which began years before the local body elections, has continued even after their conclusion. Without naming anyone, Naik accused Shinde of allocating public land parcels in Navi Mumbai to the builder lobby and claimed that he could diminish Shinde’s political influence. In response, Shinde’s son and MP Shrikant Shinde hit back on Sunday, challenging Naik to contest an election from Thane or Kalyan.
Naik was inducted into the state cabinet by the BJP after the 2024 assembly elections reportedly to cut Shinde down to size in Navi Mumbai, Thane and Palghar. Over the past year, he has repeatedly targeted Shinde on various issues and is continuing his attacks even after the end of the civic body elections.
Speaking at a function in Navi Mumbai on Friday evening, the BJP minister alleged that the state urban development department had failed to allocate land parcels for public purposes such as schools, hospitals and playgrounds, and instead gifted them to the builder lobby. He further claimed that he could end the political dominance of the Shinde family and reduce Eknath Shinde to a “former leader”.
Irked by the accusations, the Shinde camp and its leaders launched a trenchant attack on Naik on Sunday. “Ganesh Naik, on account of his advanced age, seems to have developed some mental illness like dementia,” said Shinde’s son and MP Shrikant Shinde. “As I am a doctor, I can sense it from his statements. If he has the guts, instead of making political statements he should contest the Lok Sabha elections from Thane or Kalyan.” Lambasting Naik’s threat to reduce Shinde to a “former leader,” Shrikant said, “He has forgotten that the BJP’s Manda Mhatre defeated him in the 2014 assembly elections when he was with the NCP and made him a former MLA.”
Shiv Sena spokesperson Jyoti Waghmare also attacked Naik, saying that his residence was named ‘White House’ but he had blackened his hands with corrupt activities. “No one, including Naik, can succeed against Dy CM Shinde,” she concluded.