NCP planned to kill my brother — Munde

Munde, who has been holding the portfolio for the Home Ministry, has directed the police to investigate if the “attackers were from Baramati”, and added that he suspected this to have been the work of outsiders.

Munde said in spite of the incident, the polling in Renapur passed off smoothly and the voters came in large numbers adding that T P Munde, who sustained injuries on his hand is now fine.

Referring to charges made by Rajya Sabha member and the Congress party’s state unit convenorof the campaign committee Suresh Kalmadi on the Enron project, Munde said the former was ignorant about the project.

The revised Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) signed by the Alliance Government was much better than that signed by the Congress government under Sharad Pawar, Munde claimed adding that the capital cost has been brought down by Rs 1,000 crore along with the addition of another 40 mw to the two-phased Enron project. The earlier capital cost of Rs 9,030 crore on the 2,115 mw project had been brought down to Rs 8,030 crore with a 2,170 mw capacity, he said.

The government, Munde stated, had paid a minimum of Rs 3,01 per unit of power and a maximum of Rs 3.23 per unit for the power purchased from Enron and the cost varies with the fluctuation of the dollar and the fuel cost.

He denied that anyone from the Maharashtra State Electricity Board (MSEB) would lose his job or that any of the state’s power plant would be shut down to purchase power from the Enron Corporation.

Munde, who arrived hereon Sunday evening after the completion of the polling in the first phase, claimed that the indications were favourable for the Sena-BJP alliance to retain power in the State.

He thanked the voters for turning out in large numbers, even in the areas like Chandrapur, Gadchiroli and Bhandara where the Naxalites had threatened to disrupt the polls.

He felt that the Alliance would bag a major chunk of Lok Sabha and Assembly seats.

Munde also demanded that the NCP should clarify its stand on the cotton monopoly purchase scheme since Shetkari Sanghatana chief Sharad Joshi, who has now forged an alliance with the NCP, is against the continuation of the scheme, and Sharad Pawar has maintained silence on the issue.

To questions on who would be chief minister, Munde said there is no fighting over it as there has been an agreement between the Shiv Sena and the BJP that the largest party would have its chief minister. “We have no objection to having a Sena chief minister if it bags more seats.”

On the changeof candidature for the Pune Lok Sabha constituency Munde said it was decided in favour of Anna Joshi earlier, but was changed by the Central Parliamentary Board. “We had recommended both the names with priority to Pradeep Rawat,” he added.