Nagpur: Ajit Pawar absent during Eknath Shinde, Devendra Fadnavis' visit to RSS founder's memorial

Eknath Shinde and Devendra Fadnavis pay their tributes to RSS founder Dr Keshav Baliram Hedgewar in Nagpur. Pic/X

Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader and Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister (CM) Ajit Pawar did not accompany his cabinet colleagues Devendra Fadnavis and CM Eknath Shinde during their visit to the memorial of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) founder Dr Keshav Baliram Hedgewar in Nagpur on Saturday, PTI reported.

NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar) leader and legislator Jitendra Awhad criticised Ajit Pawar, suggesting that his actions are mere "optics", as he shares power with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which is supported by RSS. Shinde and Fadnavis visited Hedgewar's memorial ahead of the launch of the second phase of Majhi Ladki Bahin scheme in Nagpur.

"Ajit Pawar is playing a different game. While politically aligned with BJP, he tries to present himself as a leader who avoids visiting the RSS founder's memorial. He acts one way in public and engages in different politics behind the scenes," Awhad alleged.

'Why did PM raise Savarkar's issue?'

He also dismissed Prime Minister Narendra Modi's apology over the collapse of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj's statue in Sindhudurg district. "Why did Modi bring up Veer Savarkar and demand an apology for those who insulted him while discussing the statue incident? The Savarkar issue was resolved before the Lok Sabha elections. This suggests that Modi had no intention of apologising. Why raise a topic that no one was discussing?" Awhad questioned.

He also accused the government of being lax in arresting the sculptor responsible for the collapse of the statue as well as those involved in the Vishalgad fort vandalism and the principal of the Badlapur school where two girls were sexually assaulted by an attendant.

The Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) from Mumbra-Kalwa in Thane district also claimed that the state government had promised to increase ASHA workers' monthly wages by Rs 5,000 in December, but the payment is yet to be revised. "Moreover, the portion of their payment that used to come from local governing bodies has been completely halted, leading to the exploitation of approximately 72,000 ASHA workers in the state," Awhad alleged.

He also accused that Shiv Sena leader and state health minister Tanaji Sawant made the "nausea" remarks about NCP because Ajit Pawar - who holds the finance ministry - objected to clearing Sawant's file. "Sawant wanted to purchase a vehicle for Rs 30 lakh, despite its actual price being only Rs 3 lakh. This led to a heated discussion in the last Cabinet meeting, where Ajit Pawar objected to the inflated cost. It was revealed that Sawant had already taken a 50 per cent commission, but the purchase file is now stuck," Awhad alleged.

(With PTI inputs)