21 December,2020 07:07 AM IST | Mumbai | Dharmendra Jore
The construction of the Metro-3 car shed at Kanjurmarg has been stayed by the high court till the next hearing. File pic
The Metro-3 project is going to be one of the planks for Mumbai's civic polls. With a year to go for the elections, the Shiv Sena and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have started playing a deep-rooted political game, which doesn't appear to be ending soon. CM Uddhav Thackeray has appealed to the Centre to discuss the Kanjurmarg land issue across the table instead of fighting legal battles over its title.
However, Thackeray's appeal came with a rider that the Centre should also think about the possibility of the state stalling a national project being built on state-owned land. He also said a tit-for-tat wouldn't do any good for the people who want development. Will the Opposition accept his appeal? Will there be any political bargaining to resolve the stalemate that, if continued for long, is bound to delay the city's first underground Metro?
Thackeray's posturing might win him some brownie points because the MVA has been creating propaganda that the BJP-led Centre motivated a legal case in the Metro-3 car shed construction at Kanjurmarg, stayed by the court till early next year. The BJP has said that the car shed's shifting from Aarey to Kanjurmarg was driven by Thackeray's 'ego', a charge the CM has accepted saying that his 'ego' was all about the development of Mumbai and Maharashtra. "Some projects need to be changed or altered to accommodate the growing needs of the future. Development that comes quickly and without application of thought is rendered useless and redundant after some years. Remember Bandra's skywalk? It had to go after some years because no thought went into building it," Thackeray said on Sunday while addressing the state. He said the Aarey land would turn out to be insufficient for a car shed in the coming years and the project would need more trees to be cut to make more land available. "Kanjurmarg will be sufficient for the next 50 years," he claimed.
Also Read: Thane may get 'Chhota Metro' with 26 stations
The Shiv Sena president, who upset the BJP by forging an alliance with the Congress and Nationalist Congress Party, is ready to give the Centre full credit for the project if Kanjurmarg is cleared through an amicable solution. "Why did the Centre move court? After all, it is public land and not owned by the Centre and State. People benefit from it. Why should there be a tug of war?" Thackeray asked. The BJP maintained the line that the CM make the Saunik Committee report public, claiming that the government has ignored its recommendations against Kanjurmarg and in favour of Aarey. The BJP has blamed the stalling, the resultant delay, cost escalations and the court case solely on Thackeray, and in the coming days, it won't stop using the accusation to paint Sena as anti-development. The BJP has been reminding people of Sena's opposition to big-ticket projects like Metro-3 in Girgaon, Samriddhi Corridor, Nanar refinery, bullet train, etc.
As the two major parties, the BJP and Sena prepare a battleground for civic polls, the Congress took a step ahead, albeit late but a necessary one, to appoint a full-time head for its Mumbai unit (MRCC). New president Bhai Jagtap has been tasked to lead a cosmopolitan pack of leaders who will chair important committees. There will be six leaders, including Jagtap as the unit head, carrying out tough organisational work before and during the civic polls. In fact, all the 'chairmen' were contenders for the top post. A former MRCC president and MP is learned to have convinced Rahul Gandhi to implement an idea he had floated last year to give leaders in warring factions responsibility, thus making the unit a collective. However, the new body is missing the representation of the important vote block of north Indians.
Also Read: Mumbai Metro depot at BKC will increase project cost: Devendra Fadnavis
In getting his plan executed, the ex-MP has also ensured that he will be a decisive force in the city's organisation, without being a part of it. Expect him to be the eyes and ears of Rahul who is tipped to be the Congress president yet again. However, with a new system being introduced, the city Congress has both scepticism and hope. The good news is that the leaders drafted in the 'unexpected' roles will be watched for their performance, including faction politics.
In wake-up mode, Congress has cautioned the Sena-led government against ignoring it in MVA schemes and policies. Sonia Gandhi's letter to the CM in this regard has given the party's aggressive ministers and workers a boost. The announcement of Sonia's demand was made in New Delhi, making it clear that the party high command isn't happy with the leaders who were expected to plan and work to get a better deal in government policies. We're told the Maharashtra Congress committee will be given a new president, an aggressive one, very soon. Speaker Nana Patole and Rajya Sabha MP Rajiv Satav are said to be in the zone of consideration.
Dharmendra Jore is political editor, mid-day. He tweets @dharmendrajore. Send your feedback to mailbag@mid-day.com
Catch up on all the latest Crime, National, International and Hatke news here. Also download the new mid-day Android and iOS apps to get latest updates.
Mid-Day is now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel (@middayinfomedialtd) and stay updated with the latest news
