Pune: Speaking at a campaigning event for the upcoming Municipal Council Elections in Maharashtra on Saturday in Bhor Tehsil of Pune District, Maharashtra Higher and Technical Education Minister Chandrakant Patil has sparked a controversy through his statements. Patil hinted that, despite Ajit Pawar being a Deputy Chief Minister and Bhor having an MLA from his party, Devendra Fadnavis is still the Chief Minister of the state, and you all should vote for him.
Along with other municipal councils and municipal panchayats in Maharashtra, even the Bhor Municipal Council will have polling on 2nd December. For this, Chandrakant Patil was there to campaign for local Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders in Bhor Tehsil. The contest for this civic body will be between two of the partners in the Mahayuti alliance -- the BJP and the Ajit Pawar-led NCP.
Ajit Pawar is the guardian minister of Pune District, along with being a deputy CM and the finance minister of the state. The MLA of the Bhor Constituency is Shankar Mandekar, from the Ajit Pawar-led NCP. Ajit Pawar has more hold on this area, but the BJP is still giving a tough fight.
Speaking on the occasion, Chandrakant Patil made the matter clear that CM Fadnavis is the ultimate leader of Mahayuti. “Even if Ajit Pawar's rule is here and his MLA has been elected, still the state's CM is Devendra Fadnavis. Ajit Pawar is the state's deputy CM. But CM is Devendra Fadnavis. That's why you should vote for CM Fadnavis. Current MLA Shankar Mandekar belongs to the Ajit Pawar-led NCP, but former MLA Sangram Thopate is now in the BJP. As a result, vote for Devendra Fadnavis.”
Scuffle Within Mahayuti Continues?
Speaking to Malegaon villagers in Baramati Tehsil, Ajit Pawar openly threatened them that they should vote for them. BJP and NCP are contesting together in Malegaon Nagar Panchayat. Pawar, who is also the Maharashtra Finance Minister, said, “I will ensure there is no shortage of funds if you elect all 18 NCP candidates. If you elect all 18 candidates, I am committed to giving whatever I have promised. But if you reject, I will also reject. You have votes, and I have funds.”
Meanwhile, in another scuffle within Mahayuti, in the Bhor Municipal Council, Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena had nominated Nitin Sonawane for the president post. But just before the elections, NCP, led by Ajit Pawar, poached Sonawane, giving a blow to Shinde Sena.
