Shiv Sena MP Milind Deora.
Credit: PTI File Photo
Mumbai: Shiv Sena MP Milind Deora has asserted there is no rift in the ruling Mahayuti alliance, amid indications of a growing unease in the Ajit Pawar-led NCP over the strident Hindutva agenda pursued by the BJP in the run-up to the Maharashtra assembly polls.
Former Union minister Deora, who is pitted against Shiv Sena (UBT) MLA Aaditya Thackeray in Worli assembly seat, also hit out at the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) coalition and accused it of creating hurdles in development projects in Mumbai and Maharashtra.
In an interview to PTI here, Deora also said voters in Maharashtra will reject the MVA's "fake narrative" of the Constitution being in danger.
"The Mahayuti is united and contesting elections with full strength. I can't say the same about the MVA," Rajya Sabha member Deora said.
The ruling Mahayuti alliance of the Shiv Sena led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, BJP and NCP is locked in a fierce contest with the MVA comprising NCP (SP), Shiv Sena (UBT) and Congress in the November 20 assembly elections in Maharashtra.
As the campaigning for the assembly elections enters the final lap, NCP leaders have signalled their unease over the 'batenge toh katenge' (divided we fall) pitch of the BJP campaign and even called for a common minimum programme for governance should the ruling alliance return to power.
On the Dharavi redevelopment project, which the Shiv Sena (UBT) has declared it would scrap if voted to power, Milind Deora said the initiative was a dream of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, Shiv Sena founder Balasaheb Thackeray, and his late father Murli Deora.
"You can have a problem with one particular developer. You can dislike that developer, change the developer. But don't deprive two lakh people of Dharavi from getting a home," he said.
"How long would you like to carry the tag 'Asia's largest slum'?" the parliamentarian asked.
He also said voters of Maharashtra have seen through the "fake narrative" of the Constitution being in danger that was spread by the MVA during the Lok Sabha elections earlier this year.
"In the Lok Sabha (polls), there was a huge fake narrative being propagated against the government, against Mahayuti, that if Modi ji became prime minister again, elections would not be held and the Constitution would be changed. People have seen none of that has happened," he said.
The Eknath Shinde-led government in Maharashtra has launched a slew of infrastructure projects and schemes in the past six months which has changed the perception of people with regard to the ruling dispensation, Milind Deora said.
"I think the Haryana election win (of BJP) has also debunked the fake narrative that was being spread in Haryana too. I am confident that the fake narrative is over. Now, it (elections) will be purely on development and who wants to take Mumbai and Maharashtra forward," he said.
About his contest with Aaditya Thackeray, the son of former chief minister Uddhav Thackeray, Milind Deora claimed there was a feeling among the voters of Worli being let down in development works by the Sena (UBT) faction.
"Uddhavji was the chief minister of Maharashtra, Aaditya was a member of his father's government. (Lok Sabha member) Arvind Sawant was a member of the Union cabinet. So much power concentrated in Worli. Yet, what could have happened for Worli has not happened," said the Shiv Sena nominee, who quit the Congress earlier this year to join CM's Shinde party.
Milind Deora also accused the MVA, and Aaditya Thackeray in particular, of practising "speed breaker politics".
"He (Aaditya) has opposed the Mahalaxmi Racecourse project (in Mumbai), which he had himself proposed but failed to implement. The Mumbai Metro project was delayed by four years, leading to cost escalation of Rs 14,000 crore. He opposed the Vadhavan port (in Palghar), the biggest project in the country," the Shiv Sena leader said.
On the opposition's allegations of businesses shifting to Gujarat from Maharashtra, Milind Deora alleged that as chief minister, Uddhav Thackeray had backed a "rogue policeman" who planted explosives outside the home of a prominent businessman in a bid to extort money.
"The chief minister at that time gave a clean chit to that police officer. How do you expect businesses to come to Maharashtra under such circumstances?" the Shiv Sena leader asked.
With Milind Deora's entry into the fray against sitting MLA Aditya Thackeray, the election to the Worli assembly seat has emerged as a high-profile contest in the Maharashtra assembly polls.
Assembly Elections 2024 | The Maharashtra Assembly polls will take place against the backdrop of a fractured political landscape in the western state where the Shiv Sena and NCP will be going up against the Uddhav Thackeray and Sharad Pawar factions, even as the BJP and Congress try to make their mark. Meanwhile, in Jharkhand, the JMM faces a new challenge after Hemant Soren's recent arrest and Champai, a longstanding party member, joining the BJP. The Haryana election resulted in a shock loss for Congress, which was looking to galvanize on the Lok Sabha poll performance, while J&K also saw the grand old party eventually stepping away from the cabinet, with Omar Abdullah's JKNC forming government. It remains to be seen if the upcoming polls help BJP cement its position further or provide a fillip to I.N.D.I.A. Check live updates and track the latest coverage, live news, in-depth opinions, and analyses only on Deccan Herald.
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