NCP chief Sharad Pawar slammed the BJP-led government over the JNU controversy and alleged that the ruling party was diverting attention, as it has been unable to complete any work. He also said that the BJP could see defeat staring at its face and was hence sowing seeds of secession and Hindutva before facing elections in Kerala, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal.
“We all have seen what happened in Parliament. BJP sees defeat staring in its face and that is why its sowing seeds of secession and Hindutva before facing elections in Kerala, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal,” Mr Pawar said after addressing his party leaders at YB Chavan Centre on Saturday morning.
Pointing at unrest in university students across India, Mr Pawar said that the JNU issue was a political conspiracy. “It is being propagated that only they (BJP) are nationalists and others are anti-nationals. Nobody supports anti-India posters. The police should investigate it but what police did is kind of provocation for students to take law in their hand. The panel which defeated ABVP (in JNU) is branded anti-national and jailed,” he said.
The NCP chief even slammed the government’s handling of deceased Rohith Vemula’s case. He said that while the government made one statement on the case, Rohith’s family has a different version to it. The government had written five letters to initiate strict action against Rohith and he was rusticated by the university, he added.
Referring to the suicide of Thane builder in which four corporators including one from NCP were arrested, Mr Pawar termed it vendetta. “A corporator from our party complained against unauthorised construction of one builder. After a few days, the builder committed suicide. In his letter names of our corporator was mentioned. When I read his suicide note, it described his financial condition. How can you arrest a person who raised his voice against illegal construction It’s the politics of revenge,” he said.
Also coming down heavily on the Devendra Fadnavis-led BJP-Shiv Sena government in Maharashtra, Mr Pawar said the new regime had done little to combat acute water scarcity in many parts of the state. “Let this government take even a single decision which my government had not taken and then ask what did we do. Power comes and goes, but it should not go to one’s head,” he said.
