Maharashtra Poll 2014: who will be the Chief Minister of Maharashtra?
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- Category: Maharashtra Political News
- Last Updated: Thursday, 22 January 2015 20:58
Maharashtra Poll 2014: who will be the Chief Minister of Maharashtra?
The latest editorial in Saamna, the mouthpiece of the Shiv Sena, has taken an apparent dig at Gopinath Munde, the most prominent leader of its ally BJP in Maharashtra. Mr Munde, who is likely to lead the BJP in the Assembly elections scheduled to be held later this year, is the Rural Development Minister in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Council of Ministers.
The editorial states, "At a programme in Marathwada, BJP state unit president Devendra Fadnavis said we have loaned Gopinath Munde to Delhi for three months. After three months, we will bring him back with interest".
- The daily goes on to compare Mr Munde with Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar, saying, "Just like Pawar, Munde is physically in Delhi but his heart is in Maharashtra".
- "At present, who will be the Chief Minister, that game is going on in Maharashtra. No one can deny the fact that each one is gearing up to become the chief minister. The BJP 's thought process has become public and hence it is important," it added.
The BJP-Shiv Sena combine won 42 of the 48 seats in Maharashtra in the recently held Lok Sabha elections. The BJP, which won 23 seats, is widely expected to field a chief ministerial candidate in the Assembly elections.
- "Under the leadership of Fadnavis, horse-trading is going on inside the BJP. They have created a new slogan; Modi in Delhi, Fadnavis in Maharashtra.
While Fadnavis believes in the politics of lending and then taking interest, in Maharashtra there is a ban on sahukari (the practice of lending money with high interest rates).
The editorial points out that Mr Munde "is part of Modi's fast track team and that's why the scheme -- of Munde being given on loan to the Centre and then being returned to Maharashtra with interest -- is a matter of worry".
The newspaper also claims, "Whatever the leaders in Maharashtra think, only Modi's view matters because he will be the final decision maker".
The Sena, which is the BJP's biggest ally with 18 seats in the Lok Sabha, also sounds a note of caution. "Instead of worrying about who will lead and who will follow, the BJP should take note of Narendra Modi's clear instructions that they should not just fight a good battle but fight to win," it says.
source:NDTV