Seasoned legislators upset over no ministerial berth

 Disgruntled senior NCP leader Chhagan Bhujbal speaking to mediapersons in Vidhan Bhavan premises on Monday.

 

 

 

 

 

Denied ministerial berths in newly sworn-in Mahayuti Government, 12 former ministers and some senior party leaders are upset. On the first day of the Winter Session of State Legislature in city on Monday, some of the leaders sent feelers that they were upset. While Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) Sudhir Mungantiwar abstained from attending the business in Legislative Assembly, Nationalist Congress Party’s (NCP) Chhagan Bhujbal reportedly proceeded to Nashik to speak to his supporters. Shiv Sena’s Narendra Bhondekar quit the party posts. Some supporters of BJP MLA Sameer Kunawar from Hinganghat in Wardha district also resigned from their party posts as he could not get ministerial berth.

 

The 12 former ministers who have not been included in the BJP-Shiv Sena-NCP Mahayuti’s Government include Sudhir Mungantiwar (BJP), Chhagan Bhujbal (NCP), Dilip Walse Patil (NCP), Vijaykumar Gavit (BJP), Deepak Kesarkar (Shiv Sena), Tanaji Sawant (Shiv Sena), Dharmaraobaba Atram (NCP), Suresh Khade (BJP), Ravindra Chavan (BJP), Abdul Sattar (Shiv Sena), Sanjay Bansode (NCP), and Anil Patil (NCP). Of them, Mungantiwar and Atram are from Vidarbha region. Bhujbal is a former Deputy Chief Minister, and Walse Patil had earlier served as Speaker of Legislative Assembly. This has stirred the political atmosphere in Maharashtra, apart from upsetting these 12 former ministers. Some of the consecutive-term MLAs also were expecting to get ministerial berth, but they also were disappointed.

 

All this was visible in different ways on Monday, the first day of the Winter Session of State Legislature. Speaking to mediapersons in Vidhan Bhavan premises, senior NCP leader Chhagan Bhujbal did not shy away from expressing his disappointment at non-inclusion in the Mahayuti Government. “I am upset. I shall decide future course (of action) after talking to the people of my constituency,” he said before proceeding reportedly to Nashik, which has his constituency of Yeola. He alleged that he was excluded from the Cabinet as he had locked horns with Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange. Stating that ministerial berths may come and go, he stressed that he could not be finished off politically. He refused to comment on the idea of ‘performance audit’ of Mahayuti ministers. Sudhir Mungantiwar, former Finance and Forest Minister and senior BJP leader, wondered why his name was removed from the list of ministers. Mungantiwar, who did not attend the proceedings on the first day of the Winter Session despite being in Nagpur, claimed that he was assured of his name in the said list. Stating that he was ‘not upset’, he said that he would continue to highlight in Legislative Assembly the issues relating to welfare of people from his constituency of Ballarpur in Chandrapur district of Vidarbha.

 

“I have no reason to be upset about it (ministerial berth). I shall work in whatever role the party assigns to me,” he said. He met Nitin Gadkari, Union Minister, at the latter’s residence in city and said, “When such things come up, I seek his guidance.” Meanwhile, in another development, a few supporters of Sameer Kunawar, Hinganghat MLA of BJP, resigned from party posts to express disappointment over their leader not being given a place in the new State Cabinet. Narendra Bhondekar, Shiv Sena MLA, resigned from all party posts as an expression of disappointment over denial of spot in the State Cabinet. As per the reports reaching here, he told reporters in Bhandara that Eknath Shinde, former Chief Minister and Shiv Sena chief, had promised him a ministerial berth. Upon realising that he was omitted from the list of ministers, he said, he decided to step down from all posts in the party and work as an ordinary worker. He was Deputy Leader of Shiv Sena and Co-ordinator for Eastern Vidarbha. He said that he had joined Shiv Sena on the condition that he would get a Cabinet berth. Stating that he had submitted his resignation to Shiv Sena leaders, he said that he was awaiting their response.

 

However, another Shiv Sena leader dropped from the list of ministers -- Deepak Kesarkar -- said that he was not upset as he understood that party leader had political compulsions to give representation to different communities and regions of the State. In the new Government, senior BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis is the Chief Minister. Eknath Shinde, Shiv Sena chief and former Chief Minister, and Ajit Pawar, NCP chief, have been inducted as Deputy Chief Ministers. In the swearing-in ceremony of 39 ministers at Nagpur on Sunday evening, 19 BJP leaders took oath as ministers and Ministers of State. Shiv Sena got 11 and NCP got nine berths in the new Government. 

 

 

Devendra Fadnavis, Chief Minister, hinted that the BJP leadership might entrust ‘another responsibility’ to Sudhir Mungantiwar, former Finance Minister and senior leader. Responding to a question regarding a senior leader like Mungantiwar not being included in the new Maharashtra Cabinet, Fadnavis replied that he had spoken with Mungantiwar. “He is a senior leader. The party leadership may entrust him with any other responsibility,” he added.