Ousted chairman reinstated; all the 15 names announced so far have political links.
The political stranglehold on the affairs of the famed Shirdi temple as well as its trust simply refuses to go. For, not only do all the 15 of the 17 new trustees of the Shri Saibaba Sansthan Trust announced by the government have deep political connections, but three of them were also part of the earlier trust, which was mired by charges of funds misappropiation.
While the Aurangabad bench of the Bombay High Court on March 13 dissolved the earlier trust, whose members continued in office illegally for eight long years as against the normal term of three years, the government has reinstated former MLA Jayant Sasane as the chairman of the trust board. Further, minister Radhakrishna Vikhe-Patil and Congress leader from Nashik Shailesh Kute have also retained their seats in the 15 names announced so far.
Activists Sandeep Kulkarni and Rajendra Gondkar, petitioners of the PIL that led to the bench dissolving the trust, had pleaded that the trust board be appointed according to Sector 5 of the Shri Saibaba Sansthan Trust, Shirdi Act, which states that trust body be constituted of Sai devotees and experts like doctors, engineers, architects, CAs, etc.
However, most of the new names in the new board are seen as political rehabilitation by the Congress and the NCP.
Trustee Shailesh Kute is said to have been compensated for his withdrawal against the official Congress candidate, Shobha Bachchav, in the last assembly elections; Surendra Kharde is known to be Vikhe-Patil’s opponent and a strong NCP leader from Kolhar in Ahmednagar district; Mininath Pandey is a director of Sangamner Sugar Factory.
Ajit Kadam is a relative of deputy CM Ajit Pawar and an NCP leader from the Deolali-Pravara region; Patangrao Shelke is the director of Ganesh Sugar Factory in the region, Snhelata Kolhe is the daughter-in-law of Shankerrao Kolhe, who was a trustee in the previous board and a defeated member in the last assembly elections, Dr Rajendra Pipada who had fought the assembly elections against Vikhe Patil as a Shiv Sena candidate has since then returned home to NCP and is also seen as Vikhe opponent, he has been the sarpanch of Kolhar, Suresh Wadhwa is the builder from Mumbai, Dr Prakash Nandurkar is also a doctor from Mumbai, Dr Namdeo Gunjal is an agricultural expert, while Sumitra Kote, the incumbent president of Shirdi municipal council, finds a seat as a nominated candidate by virtue of her post.
While the CM has announced 15 names to the 17 member body, two are to be announced. Among them are nine members from the NCP and six from Congress. The Congress still has the privilege to announce two more names.
Three members seem to compensated for their political defeats or givings. Among them are Snhelata Kolhe, whose husband Bipin Kolhe (a Congress candidate) was defeated in the last assembly election, Dr Pipada who though fought as Shiv Sena candidate was defeated and was back in NCP and Shilesh Kute who gave up his nomination for the official Congress candidate.
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