A day after Nagpur Congress MP Vilas Muttemwar blew the bugle for Vidarbha statehood by staging a day-long dharna here,Bharatiya Republican Party-Bahujan Mahasangh (BBM) leader Prakash Ambedkar on Monday convened an all-party meeting to forge unity among the proponents of statehood. Significantly,among the participants were three BJP MLAs Devendra Fadnavis,one of the most vocal voices in the region for an independent Vidarbha,Sudhakar Deshmukh and Krishna Khopde. The BJP is the only party to have officially passed a resolution in favour of Vidarbha state. The BJP top brass has reportedly given the go-ahead to the partys state unit to join the chorus in the backdrop of half of 46 seats it romped home in the Maharashtra Assembly elections. So,despite being original protagonists of the issue,if we are left behind in the fight for statehood,we may have to pay heavy price in future, a senior leader said. We had not invited MNS and Shiv Sena since they are opposed to Vidarbha state. But overall the meeting was a big success and there was unanimity among all, Ambedkar said. A follow-up meeting has been organised on January 7.
