Ajit Pawar says he pays attention only to Fadnavis, Bawankule in BJP
By : DC Correspondent
Update: 2024-08-19 15:50 GMT
Mumbai: A day after BJP workers showed him black flags in Pune, Maharashtra deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar on Monday said that he pays attention only to key leaders of his alliance partners. Pawar started his Jan Sanman Yatra in Mumbai. Congress MLA Zeeshan Siddiqui was present on the stage with the DCM. Zeeshan’s father Baba Siddiqui has already joined Ajit Pawar’s party.
Ajit Pawar has been holding ‘Jan Sanman Yatra’ — his party’s outreach programme ahead of the state Assembly elections — across the state. The initiative is aimed at informing the people about the populist decisions taken by the government such as direct cash transfer scheme for women, paid internship for youth and cooking gas subsidy.
Speaking to the media during his yatra in Mumbai, the Maharashtra DCM said, “I do not pay attention to criticism by other people. I pay attention only to the main leaders of our alliance partners such as chief minister Eknath Shinde, DCM Devendra Fadnavis and state BJP president Chandrashekhar Bawankule. I am not concerned with what other people say.”
Pawar’s obvious reference was to Sunday’s incident in which BJP leader Asha Buchke and her supporters showed black flags to him in Pune. Buchke alleged that Pawar ignores leaders from alliance partners in the government’s official functions. An official meeting was organised on tourism development in Junnar on Sunday, but the BJP was not invited for the meeting, she said.
Pawar was also accompanied by Congress’s MLA representing Vandre East assembly constituency Zeeshan Siddiqui. His father and former state minister Baba Siddiquie joined the NCP led by Ajit Pawar in February this year, after which the Congress removed Zeeshan from the post of Youth Congress president.
Zeeshan said that Ajit Pawar always helped him whenever he was cornered by his own party and others when the Maha Vikas Aghadi government led by Uddhav Thackeay was in power. “I was denied funds for the development in my constituency and at times I was told that I will not get funds as it is the chief minister’s area,” he said.
Former chief minister Uddhav Thackeray’s residence ‘Matoshree’ is in the Vandre East constituency.
Zeeshan alleged that some of his own people are trying to stop him from working in his constituency, but he is confident of getting reelected with Ajit Pawar’s support.
“A couple of days ago there was a Congress rally here and I was not invited. Also, the party distributed nomination forms to Assembly aspirants, but my supporters were refused the forms too. It is loud and clear what the party wants. But I will listen to the people of my constituency. I will fight elections from Vandre East seat and win,” the Congress MLA said.