Rumours of Rane’s move to BJP grow after he visits Ahmedabad
Speculations were rife on Thursday over Congress leader and former chief minister Narayan Rane joining the BJP after chief minister Devendra Fadnavis met BJP chief Amit Shah in Ahmedabad late on Wednesday. There were reports that Rane was also present during the meeting that lasted for about an hour, but the former denied that such a meeting took place.
Significantly, Rane was also in Ahmedabad on Wednesday and Marathi television news channels showed footage of Fadnavis and Rane travelling together in a vehicle. The channels said the footage was shot outside Shah’s residence in Ahmedabad. Rane, however, said the footage aired by television channels could be doctored or old, adding that he had not left his hotel during his Ahmedabad visit.
He said he was in Ahmedabad for work in connection with a medical college he is starting in Sindhudurg district of Konkan, but did not meet the BJP chief or the CM. He, however, refused to say anything when asked if he would quit the Congress and join the BJP or any other party. “I got an offer from the BJP some time ago, which I neither rejected nor accepted,” he said.
Sources in the BJP said Rane has been talking with BJP leaders about joining the party along with his sons, former Ratnagirisindhudurg MP Nilesh and MLA Nitesh. Rane is a member of the Legislative Council and has two MLAS with him — son Nitesh and close aide Kalidas Kolambkar.
Sources said Rane would prefer a ministerial berth in the BJP government in Maharashtra, but Fadnavis is not keen on this. He is also wary of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) probe into money laundering allegations, said sources.