Cong reaps what Sena-BJP sowed,renames projects

The Congress-NCP coalition government in Maharashtra on Wednesday added to the political heat over the naming or,as the Opposition would term it...

The Congress-NCP coalition government in Maharashtra on Wednesday added to the political heat over the naming or,as the Opposition would term it,renaming of projects. Ignoring opposition from the Sena-BJP combine,the state government through two government resolutions (GRs) named the entire stretch of links from Versova to Nariman Point after former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and the Mumbai-Pune Expressway after former deputy Prime Minister Yashwantrao Chavan.

Both the projects had begun during the Sena-BJP rule in the state. The various links from Versova to Nariman Point are in various stages of planning except the Bandra-Worli stretch opened last month. Both the GRs were passed by the Public Works Department (PWD) on Wednesday after the state Cabinet approval.

The proposal to name the sea link had sparked a controversy last week. The GR states that the sea link chain from Versova to Bandra,Bandra to Worli,Worli to Haji Ali and Haji Ali to Nariman Point will be named Rajiv Gandhi Sea Link.

The link was inaugurated last week by Congress president Sonia Gandhi,where the proposal to name it after her husband was mooted by NCP chief Sharad Pawar,sparking angry protests by opposition parties. The proposal was promptly accepted by Chief Minister Ashok Chavan during the inauguration function.

Shiv Sena and BJP leaders had claimed that at the foundation stone laying ceremony during the Sena-BJP regime,Bal Thackeray had announced that the sea link would be named after Veer Savarkar.

Senior NCP leader and Deputy Chief Minister Chagan Bhujbal later clarified that there was no government record stating that the sea link was to be named after Savarkar and announcements made at non-government functions were not binding on the government.

In the case of the 95-km expressway,while the Shiv Sena cried foul and said it be named after Marathi litterateur and humorist P L Deshpande as demanded by party supremo Bal Thackeray,the state government justified its decision on the grounds that Chavan had a major share in the development of Maharashtra.

Story continues below this ad

Sena Rajya Sabha MP and spokesperson Sanjay Raut,who is also the executive editor of the party mouthpiece Saamna,said the Sena would not allow this to happen. We do not know how the name of Yashwantrao Chavan was suddenly brought into the forefront, said Raut,adding that Thackeray was responsible for the construction of

the road during the tenure of the Sena-BJP government and had wanted the highway to be named after Deshpande.