Barely days after the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government completed half of its five-year term, murmurs within the alliance over a change in the leadership have already reached the public domain.
Nationalist Congress Party’s (NCP) Lok Sabha MP Supriya Sule visited Tuljabhavani temple in Osmanabad on Monday to pray for good rain and to seek the blessings of the goddess to alleviate farmers’ suffering.
The priest, however, prayed for an NCP chief minister in the state after the assembly elections in 2024.
Sule later told reporters: “I have come here to offer my gratitude for whatever we have got. I sought the goddess’ blessing for a good monsoon for the farmers.”
On asked when Maharashtra would get its first woman chief minister, the MP said, “I don’t have an answer; I am not an astrologer… The people of Maharashtra will decide that.”
Reacting to the remarks, Shiv Sena’s minister of state Abdul Sattar said Sule would have to wait for more than 25 years to become the first woman CM. He also said CM Uddhav Thackeray’s wife Rashmi would be the first to achieve that.
Sena’s Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut on Tuesday claimed that Thackeray would remain in the chair for the next 25 years.
“Such controversies are manufactured but one should not pay heed to them. The Maharashtra government is headed by Uddhav Thackeray. Sharad Pawar, Supriya Sule, Sonia ji [Gandhi], and Rahul ji [Gandhi] are happy with the leadership of Uddhav ji. One must not pay attention to whoever has raised the question [about change in CM],” Raut said.
Senior NCP leader and home minister Dilip Walse Patil too said there was no such proposal of change in the leadership.
“There is no discussion whatsoever on any change in chief minister within the MVA. Thackeray will continue to remain the CM for the remainder of the term. We have always maintained this stand and there is no change in that even today,” he told reporters.
Saamana flays Modi
Sena mouthpiece Saamana on Tuesday slammed the Narendra Modi government for its decision on demonetisation, in the wake of a report by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
An editorial asked if the Centre would take responsibility for the decision that caused stress to the people. “The RBI report said there had been a 101.9% rise in counterfeiting ₹500 denomination while it was 54.16% in the case of ₹2,000 denomination. The circulation of black money did not end; the black money came back to the country [from Swiss Banks], but ₹15 lakh were not deposited in the common man’s bank account; and the demon of counterfeit currency notes is still out there. The responsibility for the decision lies with you,” it said.