Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has taken a swipe at Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee President Nana Patole for his desire to become state chief minister and party Member of the Parliament (MP) Rahul Gandhi to be the Prime Minister. BJP legislator Atul Bhatkhalkar said it is not the people's will and it is not possible in the near future.
“Nata Patole wants to be the CM. Rahulji wants to be the Prime Minister. The people don’t think so at all. There is no possibility of it in the future. This is the problem of both,” said Bhatkhalkar in a tweet.
Bhatkhalkar took a dig a day after Patole said the Congress, which is currently sharing power with Shiv Sena and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), will contest the next assembly elections alone and emerge as the single largest party. Besides, in a video, which is viral on the social media, Patole has reportedly expressed his desire to become the state CM.
Patole has reiterated that Congress will fight the civic and local body elections independently. He clarified that the party has announced its move in advance, as it does not want to be held responsible for backstabbing.
Patole and Mumbai Regional Congress Committee chief Bhai Jagtap have also been making repeated statements of going solo in the BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC). However, there has been no formal decision taken by the party leadership in Delhi, which had given its approval for the Congress to join the Shiv Sena-led Maha Vikas Aghadi government to keep BJP out of power after the assembly elections held in 2019.
Former Minister Naseem Khan, however, strongly defended Patole’s announcement of the Congress party going solo in the civic and local body and assembly elections. “If the Congress party contests the elections on its own, it will benefit the party. We are trying to revive the past glory,” noted Khan, who is working president of the state unit.
Meanwhile, NCP chief Spokesman and Minister of Minority Affair said the Maha Vikas Aghadi government was formed on a common minimum programme. “The government will complete five years. The people are happy with its performance. Every party has the right to grow and consolidate its position. The state Congress chief Nana Patole has announced that the party will go solo in the next local and civic body and assembly elections. There has been so far no decision at the level of three alliance partners,” he clarified.
