Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has now taken a dig at his former boss Uddhav Thackeray likening him to ‘Nero who played the fiddle while Rome burned’. This comes days after Shinde made the ‘lightly’ remark, fuelling speculations in Maharashtra’s political circles. With Shiv Sena and NCP dividing into two factions, the political equations have turned even more interesting as both factions allied with Congress and the BJP respectively.
While Eknath Shibnde’s rebellion led to the formation of the Mahayuti government, the Sena leader is reportedly not happy with the BJP after Devendra Fadnavis was made Chief Minister. Last week, Shinde said that he shouldn’t be taken lightly as the last time when he was taken lightly, he changed the government to bring the Mahayuti to power.
Now speaking at a ‘thanksgiving rally’ of his party, Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde said he was not born with a silver spoon in his mouth, but he was born to bring golden days in the lives of common people. “They feel happy when people quit (and label) those who quit as garbage and traitors. When Rome was burning, Nero was playing the fiddle. Their case is similar,” Shinde said.
Earlier on Friday, Shinde said that people’s love was a tonic for him. “Even I do not know how many decisions I took as the chief minister of Maharashtra. The love of my beloved sisters, brothers and fathers worked as a tonic for me,” he said, adding that while positions were temporary, recognition by people was long-lasting.
Meanwhile, the Budget Session of the Maharashtra legislature starting from Monday is expected to be a heated one amid reports of a rift between Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and his deputy Eknath Shinde and the opposition trying to corner the government over embattled ministers Dhananjay Munde and Manikrao Kokate.
The session, during which the Budget for 2025-26 will be presented on March 10, will take place as the Fadnavis dispensation completes 100 days in power. It will the first full-fledged session for the government as the winter session in Nagpur was held without ministers being sworn in.
Fadnavis recently initiated a probe into a Rs 900 crore housing project in Jalna that was approved, after being scrapped initially as financially unviable, when Shinde was CM. The government has also cancelled a Rs 1400 crore solid waste collection tender approved when Shinde headed the government. Shinde’s “don’t take me lightly” remark coupled with a reference to his toppling the MVA government along with a rider that it was a warning for those who ought to understand has also raised the heat. After Fadnavis said he had not cleared names of 16 out of 125 persons for PS and OSD appointments due to them having image of “fixers”, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut tried to highlight the rift by claiming those blocked were linked to Shinde’s ministers.
The opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi, despite a severe drubbing in the November assembly polls, is expected to slam the government over Munde and Kokate. While Munde is under fire after his close aide Walmik Karad was arrested in an extortion case linked to the December 9 murder of Beed sarpanch Santosh Deshmukh, Kokate’s ministership is in question after a Nashik court sentenced him to two years in jail for cheating and forgery to obtain houses under a government scheme. The MVA, comprising the Shiv Sena (UBT), NCP (SP) and Congress, has said Fadnavis’ entire cabinet is corrupt and not just Munde and Kokate. (With agency inputs)
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