Prithviraj hits out at Aghadi govt

Senior Congress leader and former chief minister Prithviraj Chavan has raised a question mark over the functioning of Uddhav Thackeray-led Maha-rashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government, saying the ‘political leadership’ was absent while the bureaucrats were calling the shots in the decision making during the Coronavirus crisis.

“All rights of administration were currently with collectors at the district level, SDOs at the tehsil level, and while this was needed, the “political leadership was absent and nowhere to be seen.” The political leadership should take some prompt decision,” Chavan said in Pune.

The economic crisis brought about by the lockdown will require “good visionary leadership to deal with issues like industries, health care system and farmers, he added.

He also had a word of advice for Thackeray asking him to make proper appointments of Indian Administrative Service officers. “The first job of the CM is to appoint good IAS officers to the right positions. And while making the appointments, their qualifications, background should be considered, so as to utilise their expertise,” he said.

As per Chavan, some senior IAS officers were on ‘compulsory wait’ for a posting, while some bureaucrats were having to manage two departments simultaneously.

However, the former CM said that his statement should not be seen as criticism of the Aghadi government of which his party is a part. “I am not criticising the state government. In fact, whatever I am saying should be taken positively. It should not look like I am criticising my own government,” he said.