24 September,2021 08:02 AM IST | Mumbai | Dharmendra Jore
Congress leaders Balasaheb Thorat and Nana Patole at the official residence of opposition leader Devendra Fadnavis (centre) on Thursday
A couple of moves by the Congress created turbulence in the state's political sphere on Thursday. A day after its party ministers endorsed the multi-member civic ward system, the Maharashtra Congress unit opposed the restructuring by passing a resolution in its state executive meeting. The Congress also upset its ruling partners by approaching the Bharatiya Janata Party with a proposal that the BJP withdraw its candidate in the October 4 Rajya Sabha bypoll to facilitate a Congress nominee's win.
The protest against the government decision indicated that either the Congress ministers did not force their way in the Cabinet meeting on Wednesday or they did not endorse the party organisation's demand for a one-member/two-member civic ward structure. Some senior ministers, who had participated in the Cabinet meeting, were present in Thursday's party executive meeting that was chaired by state unit president Nana Patole, who tabled a resolution demanding a two-member civic ward.
"After yesterday's [Wednesday's] cabinet decision, I received many calls opposing it. We didn't want three-member or four-member wards. We had made a formal demand to the government. In today's meeting we have resolved to ask the government to make it a two-member system," Patole said while reading the resolution, even as several executives shouted that they would rather prefer a one-member system.
Later, Patole said in a statement that he would officially convey the party's resolution to CM Uddhav Thackeray, requesting him to reconsider the decision.
Earlier in the day, Congress legislative party leader and revenue minister Balasaheb Thorat and state unit president Nana Patole created a stir in the MVA camp when they met the opposition leader Devendra Fadnavis at the latter's official residence on Thursday. The meeting happened to discuss the Congress's proposal for the BJP that the Rajya Sabha bypoll should be held unopposed, because the vacancy has been created by the death of Rajiv Satav.
BJP has fielded its general secretary Sanjay Upadhyay against Congress' Rajani Patil. The 288 members of the state Assembly, including the 12 suspended BJP legislators, will vote in the bypoll. The three-party MVA has a clear majority to win the contest, if any. On the other hand, the BJP leaders have been expecting to stage an upset against the treasury benches.
However, the visit has upset the Sena and NCP that felt that the Congress shouldn't have approached the BJP. "As if they [the Congress] don't trust the allies who can help it win very easily. Why to approach the BJP when we have the numbers?" asked a senior NCP leader.
In barter, Fadnavis is reported to have asked the Congress to get the suspension of the 12 BJP MLAs revoked, but Thorat denied any such proposal. "We met Fadnavis only to ensure that the tradition of unopposed bypoll is maintained in Maharashtra. We're confident that the Congress would win the contest, if any," he said.
A BJP leader recalled that the Congress had fielded a candidate in Beed against Dr Pritam Munde, who had contested a Lok Sabha bypoll in 2014, following the death of her sitting MP father Gopinath Munde.
