Recently, Pawar and Tatkare met senior BJP minister Eknath Khadse at his official residence at Malabar Hill. Sources said the Opposition leaders were quite terrified, and felt they could be arrested at any moment.
The Opposition had emerged stronger after the local body election but the arrest of NCP leader Sameer Bhujbal and the permission to prosecute former chief minister Ashok Chavan has put it on the back-foot once again.
Currently, Opposition leaders – senior NCP leader Chaggan Bhujbal, former deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar and NCP state unit president Sunil Tatkare – are busy saving their colleagues from legal tangles and possible arrest in connection with the Maharashtra Sadan, irrigation and money laundering scams.
Recently, Pawar and Tatkare met senior BJP minister Eknath Khadse at his official residence at Malabar Hill. Sources said the Opposition leaders were quite terrified, and felt they could be arrested at any moment. "Rather than attacking and exposing the incumbent government, the Opposition is spending most of the time trying to save their own skin. Frequent news reports concerning the scams and their investigation are maligning the Opposition's image. Khadse is a senior, seasoned minister, whose equations are cordial across the parties. So the Opposition is expecting some political help from him," said a source close to Khadse.
Meanwhile, Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) spokesperson Sachin Sawant said BJP was indulging in vendetta politics. "If they are seriously against corruption, then why no action or inquiry was initiated against their several ministers involved in recently emerged scams? Why this double standard? Sparing their ministers means they are leaving some work for us also," he said.
Sawant added that the Modi magic was all but gone now. "In the local body elections, people showed the BJP its place. Congress emerged as the number one party, followed by NCP, Sena and BJP. There is huge discontent among people, particularly the farmers and the working class. BJP has nothing to show. That's why they are maligning our leaders," Sawant said.
A senior NCP leader said they were paying the price of giving unconditional support to the BJP government. "Our leaders expected that by doing this, we will be spared from the investigations and actions. But chief minister Devendra Fadnavis has been attacking and arresting our leaders only. It is nothing but stabbing in the back," he said, requesting anonymity.
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