Gawande hits out at `second rank’ leaders

Gawande said that the loyalists would “teach the second rank leaders a lesson” if they did not mend their ways. However, he said the loyalists were ready to sort out the the problems within the party by way of deliberation.

He accused the second rank leadership of meting out step-motherly treatment to the party loyalists on many issues saying that the Shiv Sena chief had different views on them. Without naming anyone, Gawande said that such leadership would ruin the Shiv Sena. The former minister said that he had urged Bal Thackeray not to payany heed to the `flatterers’. “It would be unfortunate if he does not pay attention to our request,” he said. However, he made it clear that he had full respect for Bal Thackeray and Chief Minister Manohar Joshi.

Gawande said that the present government was not the Shivshahi which was expected by Bal Thackeray. During Shivshahi, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj would felicitate the real workers but the State Government neglected them. He said, at present, the government was on the decline and added that the party loyalists would make all efforts to save it (the government).

He told his supporters how the CM demanded his resignation saying that it was the message of the Shiv Sena chief and how he resigned. He said that he was made a minister of state although he was eligible enough to be a cabinet minister. “Now I will not accept the deputy chief ministership even if it is offered to me,” he said.

Gawande said that the decision to drop him and Ganesh Naik from the ministry was wrong. Claiming support ofthree ministers and 20 other MLAs, he said that he had asked them not to come out openly with him. That was in their interest, he added.

Refuting charges of corruption levelled against him, Gawande said if persons making the allegations proved the charges, he would give all his property to them.

Declaring his assets, he said his father had over 160 acres of land but he not a single acre was in his name. He took money from the society and distributed it among the poor, he said. “I believe in the definition of social work by Sant Gadge Baba, namely, taking from the society and giving it back to the society,” he said.

Mukund Medshikar, the Zilla Parishad president and Shiv Sena leader, in his address, appealed to Gawande to take “a revolutionary decision against the injustice meted out to him”. Anna Yerlikar-Patil declared that he would take up the issue of Gawande to the Shiv Sena supremo and try to solve grievances within the party.