Discord, poor decisions, government a failure on all fronts: Sunil Tatkare

How would you rate the Fadnavis Government's performance?

Over the past three years, Maharashtra and the country have seen the BJP and Shiv Sena pulling in different directions. There is no unanimity in the decisions taken by the government. Despite being part of the decision-making process, Shiv Sena continues to criticize the government. This has led to the administration running riot. The government is only making announcements with little to show for implementation.

According to you, what are the prominent failures of the state government?

They have failed on all fronts — be it agriculture, employment and in ensuring rights for workers.

Farm loans are yet to be written off…

The announcements about loan waivers are fruitless. There is a yawning gap between the announcements and actual implementation. We have been saying this since the beginning.

Work on the government's flagship announcements like the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Statue in the Arabian Sea and a memorial of Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar in Dadar are yet to take off…

True, work on these projects has not been launched. Only the ground-breaking ceremony has been performed.

There is a perception that despite an undercurrent of anger against the present dispensation, the Opposition has failed to tap into this discontent. It is the lack of a credible Opposition that is working in the state government's favour.

The results of the recent local body elections have shown that such perceptions are wrong. The state government was not eager to waive off agricultural loans and it was the 'Sangharsh Yatra' launched by the opposition parties that forced its hand. The NCP has been playing an effective role of the Opposition, both inside and outside the legislature.

The tensions within the Congress and the NCP are also palpable.

We may have differences on some issues but we work as a cohesive unit in the legislature.

The NCP is seen as being hand-in-glove with the BJP, a party eager for a political truck with it.

We have many rivals who spread such canards in an attempt to create an atmosphere of suspicion about the NCP. This is not true. On the contrary, the NCP is more aggressive against the BJP. We have launched state-wide agitations against the BJP.

A number of leaders have switched sides from the NCP to the BJP.

Those days are history. This wave has passed. It may have been relevant one year ago but today, the changing political climate has ensured that defections from the opposition to the BJP have stopped.