Congress names Vijay Wadettiwar as Leader of Opposition in Maharashtra Assembly

NCP president Sharad Pawar and state unit chief Jayant Patil had said two weeks ago that Congress will get the Leader of Opposition post as it is the biggest party in the Opposition.

The announcement was anticipated for the past two weeks, since the start of the monsoon session of the state legislature.

The announcement of Wadettiwar as the Leader of Opposition is likely to be made by Narvekar on Wednesday when the regular meeting of the legislative Assembly is held.

Wadettiwar was made Leader of Opposition in 2019 as well after former Congress leader and the then Leader of Opposition, Radhakrishna Vikhe-Patil, quit the party to join the BJP, ahead of Lok Sabha polls. Despite serving as the Opposition leader for merely four months, Wadettiwar managed to deliver better results to the party compared to 2014 and 2019 Assembly polls. Even in the 2019 general elections, Congress had won only one Lok Sabha seat out of 48, that being Chandrapur – the home district of Wadettiwar. The seat is now lying vacant after the death of LS MP Balu Dhanorkar.

Born in 1962, Wadettiwar started his political career in NSUI – the student wing of the Congress. In the early 90s, he joined Shiv Sena and was even made chairman of Maharashtra Forest Development Corporation between 1996 and 1998 during the time of Sena-BJP government. He was made MLC by Shiv Sena in 1998 and later he contested and won his first Assembly election in 2004 from Chimur constituency as a Shiv Sena candidate. He was one among the 11 MLAs who rebelled against the Sena leadership along with former CM and now Union minister Narayan Rane.

He was made a Minister of State for the first time in 2008 and later too after the 2009 elections. After Congress lost power in 2014, he was deputy leader in the legislative Assembly. Known for his aggressive speeches, he was made the Opposition leader in 2019 after Vikhe-Patil’s resignation. Wadettiwar was Minister for Relief and Rehabilitation during the tripartite MVA government.

The Congress party was cautious while deciding on the Leader of Opposition as none of the leaders in the past several years has remained loyal to the parent party. Circumstances have forced them to jump the ship or rebel against the parent party. The list includes Eknath Khadse, Eknath Shinde, Radhakrishna Vikhe-Patil and Ajit Pawar. “There have been instances where the Leader of Opposition has joined the other party. But we are sure that nothing of this sort will happen in this case,” Thorat said after submitting the letter.

The Congress high command was also mulling over giving a chance to the second rank leadership of the party to which seniors like Balasaheb Thorat and Ashok Chavan had agreed. The four names were being discussed included Yashomati Thakur, Sunil Kedar, Vijay Wadettiwar and Sangram Thopte.

“Yes, there is a big challenge ahead. But the high command has chosen me because they believe that I can successfully tackle the challenge,” Wadettiwar said after being nominated as the Opposition leader.

He said he does not believe in rumours about split in the Congress and all leaders stand united against this government. Commenting on his strained relations with party state unit president Nana Patole, he said that difference of opinion is always welcome but he has nothing personal against him. “We are together now,” he said.

He added that since the letter has been given to the Assembly Speaker and it is expected that he will accept it tomorrow.

When asked about his priorities in the remaining three days of the monsoon session of the state legislature, Wadettiwar said that arrest of Manohar alias Sambhaji Bhide, who disrespected Mahatma Gandhi, will be the main demand and panchnamas of farmlands affected by heavy rains will be another demand of the Opposition.