Newsmaker | Row over Ram remarks: A Pawar loyalist, Jitendra Awhad known for criticism of ‘Manuvad’

An OBC leader, he is also vocal against “Manuvadi” forces, with the remarks on Ram which have landed him in trouble with the right-wing forces and the BJP stemming from the same belief.

A three-time MLA from Mumbra, Awhad was a student activist, his most known agitation being against a hike in college tuition fees in 1982, before he took a plunge into politics.

Starting with the Congress, he was an office-bearer in the NSUI, Maharashtra, and in its all-India wing, before being made Maharashtra Youth Congress President in 1996.

After Pawar split from the Congress and floated the NCP, Awhad followed him into the new party. The loyalty earned him nomination to the Legislative Council twice, in 2002 and 2008.

Awhad made his first successful electoral foray with the 2009 Assembly elections, winning from the Muslim-dominated Mumbra-Kalwa constituency by 15,689 votes against a Shiv Sena candidate. He has since won the seat twice more, in 2014 and 2019.

After he won in 2014, Awhad became Minister for Medical Education & Horticulture in the NCP-Congress government. In 2019, the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi government that lasted till 2022 also had Awhad in the Cabinet, as Housing Minister.

His remarks have put him in the crosshairs of Hindutva groups as well. In 2018, the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad told a Sessions Court that suspected right-wing activists had carried out a reconnaissance of several persons, including Awhad, who were on its target list for “speaking against Hindu religion”.

Awhad has also been accused of taking law into his own hands. In 2020, he was named along with 15-20 others for assaulting a Thane-based civil engineer who had posted a morphed photograph of Awhad. A minister at the time, Awhad was arrested but let out on bail the same day.

While the Ram remarks may be the latest provocation, the BJP has earlier too locked horns with Awhad, accusing him of “pandering to minority issues” to win Muslim votes in Mumbra.

Following the NCP split, Ajit Pawar who leads the rival faction had accused Awhad of being the reason behind several leaders exiting the party in Thane.

However, Awhad continues to enjoy Sharad Pawar’s trust. After the split, Pawar had tried to get him the post of Leader of the Opposition. However, the Congress had managed to wrest it, for its leader Vijay Wadettiwar.