‘Our candidates are very good, and we have good coordination among allies’
The Maharashtra Chief Minister says NDA is in prime position to win and that the work of the Mahayuti government in the State has been exemplary; he adds that there are no diˆerences between his Sena faction and BJP, but the Opposition MVA is facing rebel
Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde is facing his rst big electoral test after splitting the Shiv Sena and forming a new government in the State. He speaks on his government, the NDA, and poll prospects. Excerpts:
The Maharashtra poll is being seen as the most challenging for the NDA among all States.
Not at all, we are in prime position, we are winning all ve seats in the rst phase. In the past two years, the kind of work that our Mahayuti government has done in reviving projects such as the Metro, the Nagpur-Mumbai Samriddhi Express, the Atal Setu, the Jalyukta Shivir, has been exemplary, especially looking at how all work was at a stop under the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government. The work done by Prime Minister [Narendra] Modi in his 10 years at the helm was not seen before, even [during] 60 years under the Congress.
Politically, however, there have been unprecedented political alliances in Maharashtra that confuse the situation.
It is true that nobody could have dreamt before 2019 that the Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) and the Congress could come together. The ideology of our leader, the late Balasaheb Thackeray, was against the Congress ideology, and he had even said that if it ever happened that the Sena moved towards the Congress, he would disband the party itself. But the opposite happened, and the Shiv Sena (UBT) formed a government with them, only with the aim of [Uddhav Thackeray] becoming Chief Minister, and solely for the purpose of fullling a personal ambition.
But your splitting the party has also elicited sympathy for Uddhav Thackeray...
Is betraying your party colleagues and abandoning your ideology going to elicit sympathy from the people? The way the Shiv Sena (UBT) completely gave up the ideology of Balasaheb Thackerayji, to give up Hindutva, will this not be seen by the people as a betrayal? What is the Shiv Sena’s ideology as enunciated by Balasaheb Thackerayji? It is Hindutva, 80% social work, 20% politics, which has now been forgotten by the Shiv Sena (UBT), so how will they gain people’s sympathy? People want development, and you [referring to Uddhav Thackeray] ran the government, or tried to, from home. Who will people vote for, those who work or those who sit at home?
It was suggested that the MVA would have more trouble nalising its list, but it is the Mahayuti list that has been delayed.
Only where the chances of victory are high, there are competitive claims. Our candidates are very good and we have good coordination among our allies. Look at the MVA; despite early declaration, there are many rebel candidates in dierent seats.
It appears that the addition of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP-Ajit Pawar faction) has lessened the BJP’s dependence on your party.
Look, we have an ideological alliance; the Shiv Sena and the BJP are both committed to the same ideals, and our alliance is more than a quarter century old. Ajit Pawarji also saw Prime Minister Modi’s work and came over to our side. There is something to be said for political adjustment, and Shiv Sena and BJP have no dierences.
Mumbai is India’s premier commercial city but the industry was spooked because of certain incidents such as the presence of a bomb outside a prominent industrialist’s house. Has any outreach been made to improve the mood of the industry?
It is true. If bombs are placed outside the residence of an industrialist or a morcha is taken out against him/her, why would industrialists not fear to be here? But that was under the MVA government, and we have done much to restore the faith of industry as no one can dare to carry out such acts; law and order is restored; incentives are being given to industry. We have huge potential and connectivity for industry to thrive.
But Foxconn-Vedanta went out of Maharashtra under your regime…
That happened when we had barely been two months into government. You need more time than that to prepare. But in the past two years, we have signed MoUs worth ₹5 lakh crore in two [World Economic Forums in] Davos. Industry is coming to Maharashtra, as they have an assurance that they will be welcomed and treated well.
The knotty question of Maratha reservations hovers over the polls, with some in your alliance also worried that the OBC share of the pie may shrink if Marathas are given reservations.
As a government, I and both the Deputy Chief Ministers are committed to providing reservations for Marathas and we have cleared the way for 10% reservations by calling a special session of the Assembly as well. Now some people, who had never provided this reservation when they had the chance, and only did politics in the name of Marathas, have gone to court. We, on our part, have given the reservations and the courts have not granted any stay on that till now. This has all been done without hurting the interest of any other groups; we want the support of all groups — Maratha, OBC, SC/ST, Dhangar, minorities — who all live in Maharashtra.
Keeping on the topic of reservations, it’s being said that the BJP’s slogan of “400 paar” is raising fears that such a majority will be used to do away with reservations and therefore there is low polling as well.
This is all Opposition propaganda. Mr. Modi has made it very clear that reservations are here to stay. As for low polling, there is a heat wave on as well. Despite that, polling hasn’t gone below 50% in any State so far. Rahul Gandhi is a ne one to talk of low polling when he takes o for cooler climes as soon as the heat hits.