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Journalism of Courage
Despite the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) declining to announce a Chief Ministerial candidate for the upcoming assembly elections, Congress legislative party leader Balasaheb Thorat expressed confidence on Thursday that the next Chief Minister will be from Congress.
“I urge everyone to work diligently as an alliance. I am 100 per cent sure that the Chief Minister will come from the Maha Vikas Aghadi and will be from Congress. Let’s focus on achieving that,” said Thorat during a review meeting for the Congress party’s Konkan division in preparation for the elections in Bhayander (west). He emphasized the importance of preparing for upcoming municipal and district council elections as well, stating, “Start working on these now, as they are significant too.”
All three parties in the MVA—Shiv Sena (UBT), Nationalist Congress Party (SP), and Congress—have previously stated that they will not name a Chief Ministerial candidate for the elections. Thorat’s declaration marks the first time a senior MVA leader has openly suggested that the next Chief Minister will be from Congress. Responses from the other two allies remain absent. A senior leader from the NCP (SP) commented that there is nothing wrong with Thorat’s statement about the next CM being from the MVA.
Earlier in the meeting, Congress Maharashtra in-charge Ramesh Chennithala remarked, “The threats made against the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, by a ruling party MP, MLA, and a central minister should be taken seriously. Rahul Gandhi’s reputation has significantly grown both in India and abroad. He is the only leader actively challenging Narendra Modi and the RSS, posing a major challenge to the BJP. This is why the BJP and its allies are continuously issuing threats, but Rahul Gandhi is undeterred.”
The Congress organized protests across the state on Thursday against BJP leaders for their inflammatory remarks against Gandhi. “While the central government has fostered an atmosphere of fear, Rahul Gandhi undertook a 4,000 km journey to shift the nation’s mood and protect our Constitution and democracy. Although he is a calm leader, the BJP is targeting him, and he faces ongoing threats. The Congress party will not tolerate this,” said Maharashtra Congress chief Nana Patole.
Retired IPS officer and former Mumbai Commissioner of Police Sanjay Pandey joined Congress on Thursday in the presence of Mumbai Congress chief Varsha Gaikwad. Pandey is expected to be fielded from an assembly seat in Mumbai with a significant north Indian population. A 1986 batch IPS officer, his career has been controversial; he was arrested by central agencies in June 2022 in connection with the National Stock Exchange phone-tapping case and was released on bail five months later.
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