For Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, more than the Opposition, it is his own Cabinet colleagues who are creating problems for him by speaking out of turn.
On Friday, the Nationalist Congress Party’s (NCP) Minister for Cooperation, Babasaheb Patil, was the latest Mahayuti minister to find himself in the middle of a controversy for making adverse remarks about farm loan waivers. In a widely circulated video, Patil is heard telling a crowd
“Demanding a loan waiver has become a fad. We politicians also immediately make promises of loan waivers, as we also have to get elected … If villagers were to say we will vote only those who get us a river, our leader will promise that too. Those who are demanding should decide what to ask for and politicians should know what to accept.”
The comment came at a time when farmers, especially in the Marathwada region, are dealing with the aftermath of unprecedented floods. In several parts of Maharashtra, heavy rain has caused major crop loss. According to the state Department of Agriculture, the estimated khariff crop loss due to floods and rains is 68.9 lakh hectares. Kharif crops were sown on 144 lakh hectares. The NCP minister’s comments came a week after Fadnavis announced a Rs 31,678-crore flood relief package for affected farmers, the highest flood-relief package in the state’s history.
Facing criticism from the Opposition, Patil did a U-turn, saying, “I neither intended to hurt farmers nor am I against a loan waiver.”
Patil is not the only Mahayuti minister facing Opposition fire. On Friday, Shiv Sena MoS (Home) Yogesh Kadam faced Opposition criticism for allegedly permitting a gun licence to gangster Nilesh Ghayawal’s brother Sachin. Kadam, who dismissed the allegations as baseless, sought a meeting with his party leader and Deputy CM Eknath Shinde on Friday. At the meeting, Shinde is learnt to have assured Kadam of his backing.
Earlier this year, another NCP minister, Manikrao Kokate, faced flak for his comments on Re 1 insurance for farmers. “Even beggars don’t accept Re 1. And here we have a government giving Re 1 crop insurance to farmers,” Kokate had said in February. The same month, a Nashik district court convicted him of forgery and illegally acquiring two flats. He subsequently challenged the verdict, which stayed his conviction.
The following month, NCP minister Dhananjay Munde was forced to step down after his close aide Walmik Karad was accused of involvement in the murder of a sarpanch.
In July, a video purportedly showing Sena minister Sanjay Shirsat with a bag of cash surfaced, leading to Opposition attacks. Shirsat’s son Siddhant, too, found himself in trouble after the CM ordered a probe into the sale of a hotel in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar with links to him. Then, Kadam was accused of being involved in illegal sand trading and operating dance bars in his mother’s name, while ministers like Sanjay Rathod and Dadaji Bhuse (both from the Sena) were accused of discrepancies in recruitment processes and transfers concerning their demands.
Kokate again faced flak when, during the Monsoon Session, he was seen playing an online card game on his phone. Despite pressure from the Opposition, only his portfolio was changed and he was not dropped from the government.
These repeated transgressions led to Fadnavis issuing a stern warning to his Cabinet colleagues in July. A minister said, “The CM told us to be mindful and not trigger controversies and instead focus on development. He also asked us to issue quick clarifications if charges are levelled.”
BJP concerned
However, as the latest episodes show, the CM’s words may not have had an effect. And the state BJP leadership has also noted the problems caused by these errant ministers.
A BJP leader said the NCP and Sena ministers landing themselves in a series of controversies was not a good look for the Mahayuti. “The state government has taken such a major decision to help farmers … And this amount will be credited to the farmers’ accounts before Diwali. Such a major relief package generated goodwill for the government. But when a minister makes insensitive remarks, it acts as a spoilsport,” said a senior party functionary.
Another BJP leader pointed out that when minister and party leader Nitish Rane made communally insensitive remarks late last year and this January, the party leadership had pulled him up and asked him to “exercise restraint”.
With the BJP said to be trying to impress upon its allies to rein in their leaders and ministers who are frequently landing the ruling alliance in trouble, NCP insiders said Deputy CM and party leader Ajit Pawar was not someone to take anti-farmer remarks lightly and he would speak to Babasaheb Patil.