Patole takes over as state Congress chief

Gives chale jao call to oust the Modi government

Newly appointed Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee president Nana Patole, after officially taking over the charge on Friday, gave a call for Narendra Modi sarkar chale jao (oust the Narendra Modi government) at the historic August Kranti Maidan in south Mumbai. He said that the Modi government has been working in an autocratic manner and harmed all democratic institutions. Therefore, the time was opportune to give a chale jao call on the lines of a similar call given by Mahatma Gandhi against British rulers.

Patole, who took over from the outgoing president Balasaheb Thorat, slammed the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government for criminal negligence towards farmers and their demands. In counter to the PM terming the agitators as aandolan jeevi, he termed the PM and BJP workers as dhongi jeevi (hypocrite). Patole, who after garlanding the Chhatrapati Shivaji statue at the Vidhan Bhavan, reached the meeting venue driving a tractor and a bullock cart. The Congress party put up a big show of strength as the motorcycle rally was also organised till the meeting venue. Congress party, which is Shiv Sena’s junior ally in the Maha Vikas Aghadi government, had displayed banners and posters at every corner. Patole lashed out at the central government’s move to disinvest in public sector undertakings, including railways, and bring in private sector investment to modernise railway stations. “Congress will launch an agitation and will prohibit the central government from such a sale and transfer of key organisations built up by the successive party-led government outside Maharashtra,” he warned.