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Journalism of Courage
While Maharashtra Congress leaders on Tuesday made it a point to extend solidarity to NCP president Sharad Pawar, the party also emphasised that it is time to grow bigger in the state.
Senior Congress leader and former CM Ashok Chavan said the space that has become vacant after Ajit Pawar’s rebellion gives an opportunity to the Congress. “The Congress now has scope to grow — a scope to contest more seats,” he said.
Party general secretary and state in-charge, H K Patil, who attended the Congress Legislative Party meeting on Tuesday, said: “An unconstitutional government is in power in Maharashtra and a number of disqualification petitions are pending. People of Karnataka (earlier) rejected Operation Lotus. We are certain people of Maharashtra will do the same.”
State Congress chief Nana Patole, who met Pawar on Tuesday, said: “The political drama in Maharashtra is on the orders of [Prime Minister Narendra] Modi and [Home Minister Amit] Shah from Delhi and the script sent by them. We (Congress) have decided to stand firm within the MVA. I spoke with Sharad Pawar-ji and will speak with Uddhav-ji (Thackeray) as well. We will start a statewide tour to expose the dirty tricks of this government.”
Since the formation of NCP in 1999, Maharashtra has seen a four-party politics, with smaller outfits around the main political forces. The NCP’s dominance in western Maharashtra and parts of Marathwada and north Maharashtra came at the cost of the Congress, and its growth had limited the Congress to Vidarbha and other pockets in the state.
The rebellion and consequent weakening of NCP is likely to give the party more space.
Former CM Prithviraj Chavan also accepted that the Congress now has an opportunity to grow in Maharashtra. “There is no point denying that the party has scope to grow, but we must work hard to reach out to the masses,” he said.
The Congress is set to stake claim on the post of Leader of Opposition in the Assembly after Ajit Pawar camp’s rebellion. With 53 MLAs, NCP was the largest opposition party, and Ajit Pawar was the Leader of Opposition. Now, Congress, with 45 legislators, is set to be the largest opposition party.
Sharad Pawar had also said on Monday that the party with more MLAs should get the Opposition leader’s post. “I don’t think there will be any conflict. In any case, the opposition party with the highest number gets the LoP post. If Congress has the bigger number, it will get the Opposition leader’s post,” he had said.
