Opposition won’t let up on ‘United Maharashtra’

Opposition parties in the Assembly, Congress and NCP, once again raked up ‘United Maharashtra’ by moving a resolution under section 23 and demanded voting on it. However, the Speaker of the House did not take any decision on the matter.

Meanwhile, chief minister Devendra Fadnavis reiterated he was the “CM of a united Maharashtra”, but refused to say he would remain so till the end of his tenure. In the last three days, the house witnessed discussions and debates over a united Maharashtra from the opposition, while BJP MLAs demanded separate Vidarbha.

On Wednesday, leader of Opposition Radhakrishna Vikhe-Patil raised the issue once again through section 23 on which voting can be demanded. Mr Vikhe-Patil said the resolution has been brought in to keep Maharashtra united. NCP group leader Jayant Patil said the House should pass a resolution and ensure that Maharashtra is not divided.

Another NCP leader and former deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar however was not convinced about the chief minister’s commitment. “When Fadnavis was the leader of the Opposition, he alluded to a separate Vidarbha several times. So, he might propose a division of the state to the prime minister. At least 150 MLAs are supporting United Maharashtra and hence, the resolution should be admitted,” Mr Pawar said.

However, Speaker of the House Haribhau Bagde did not give a ruling.

In the Legislative Council, Mr Fadnavis reiterated there was no proposal by his government to grant statehood to Vidarbha region. “The Constitution of the country gives the right of creating separate states to the Centre and not to the state government. As far as Vidarbha is concerned, there is no proposal for separate statehood for the region by the state government,” he said. “I am the CM of a united Maharashtra. As a party, BJP favours creation of smaller states but Sena favours a unified Maharashtra. However, in the government, both parties are working in tandem,” the CM said.