Devendra Fadnavis arrives at BJP office in Mumbai to attend party's core committee meeting

Pic/PTI

Maharashtra Deputy CM and BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis arrived at the BJP office in Mumbai to attend the party's core committee meeting on Saturday, reported news agency ANI.

Union Ministers Bhupender Yadav, Ashwini Vaishnaw, and other party leaders were also seen at the BJP office to attend the party's core committee meeting, reported ANI.

The Maharashtra Assembly elections are scheduled to be held this year to elect 288 members of the state's legislative assembly.

Meanwhile, on Friday, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister and NCP chief Ajit Pawar who also holds the finance portfolio in the state, presented the state budget in the Assembly during the ongoing Monsoon Session and announced 'Mukhyanantri Majhi Ladki Bahin' a scheme under which all woman between 21 and 60 years will be given 1500 per month, reported ANI.

The scheme is inspired by Madhya Pradesh's Ladli Behna Yojana of the BJP government.

While presenting the budget Pawar said, "We are announcing Mukhyanantri Majhi Ladki Bahin (CM My Beloved Sister). Under this, all women will be given Rs 1500 per month. The scheme will be implemented from July 2024."

Further Ajit Pawar announced, "We will provide Rs 5000 per hectare bonus to all farmers for their crops of cotton and soybean in Maharashtra...We will also give 5 rupees per litre bonus to milk-producing farmers even after 1st July 2024. Govt has increased the monetary help in deaths due to animal attacks, now the next of kin will get Rs 25 lakhs instead of 20 Lakhs earlier.

Earlier, the Maharashtra Bharatiya Janata Party core committee was also held at Fadnavis's residence on June 21, reported ANI.

After the core committee concluded, Maharashtra BJP president Chandrashekhar Bawankule said that in the meeting the party analyzed the entire Lok Sabha elections and the mistakes that were being made by the party in the elections.

"Maharashtra core committee meeting was held and in this meeting, we analysed the elections that were held recently in the state. Sharad Pawar, Uddhav Thackeray and the Congress leaders lied and asked for votes from the people, but now the people have understood...We analysed the entire Lok Sabha elections, and what were our mistakes. We will try to rectify them and our government will try to fulfil the demands of the people," Bawankule told reporters, reported ANI.

The BJP dipped to nine seats in Maharashtra against 23 in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. The vote share stood at 26.18 per cent. The Congress, on the other hand, marginally improved its seat share by securing 13 seats in the state, reported ANI.

The Shiv Sena and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) won seven and one seats respectively, taking the total tally of the NDA to 17. The Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackrey) got nine seats while the Nationalist Congress Party - Sharadchandra Pawar won eight seats.

(With inputs from ANI)