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Sena-BJP rally in Aurangabad: NDA alliance will stay intact, says CM Fadnavis

Uddhav Thackeray reiterated that Sena and BJP have taken up the responsibilities equally for the 2019 polls. He explained how Sena’s criticism against BJP never came in the way of public welfare projects.

Shiv Sena’s Arjun Khotkar offers sweets to state BJP president Raosaheb Danve in the presence of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray in Aurangabad on Sunday. Khotkar, who had threatened to contest against Danve, has decided to withdraw from the race.

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Sunday said that all the alliance partners in NDA will remain united in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections in Maharashtra.

Shiv Sena and BJP may have had differences on some issues but they remained united at heart. Therefore, the pre-poll alliance of Shiv Sena and BJP in national interest was natural,” he said at a joint rally of Sena and BJP in Aurangabad.

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The rally was one of several planned by BJP and Sena across Maharashtra in the coming days. Last week, Sena and BJP held joint rallies in Amaravati and Nagpur in the Vidarbha region. Stating that the Sena-BJP alliance was not for power or wealth, Fadnavis said, “The common cause which has always held Sena and BJP together is national interest. People of the country also know who can best serve the nation.”

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“Notwithstanding efforts by political rivals to create fissures within NDA, not a single alliance partner will leave BJP,” he asserted, adding that the Kolhapur rally on March 24 will display the grand alliance of NDA. His remarks indicate that apart from Sena and BJP, all other alliance partners, namely Rashtriya Samaj Party, Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatna and Republican Party of India(A), will remain in the alliance.

In a scathing attack against Congress and NCP, Fadnavis said that they boast about UPA’s Rs 70,000-crore loan waiver for farmers across the country. “But farmers in Maharashtra received only Rs 4,000 crore. Whereas, the BJP government in Maharashtra has given the biggest-ever loan waiver of Rs 24,000 crore to 51 lakh farmers. More farmers are being accommodated in the loan waiver,” he added. The CM said that the state government’s Jalyukt Shivar has helped in creating more than five lakh projects helping farmers easy access to water structures and enabling them to take at least two decent crops even during drought.

Festive offer

Addressing the rally, Sena president Uddhav Thackeray admitted that whatever differences were there between Shiv Sena and BJP have been resolved. Referring to the sharp infighting between state BJP chief Raosaheb Danve and Shiv Sena’s Arjun Khotkar for the Jalna Lok Sabha seat, Thackeray said that the matter has been amicably settled. Khotkar had threatened to contest as a rebel against Danve in the Jalna seat. But after Fadnavis and Thackeray intervened, Khotkar has decided not to stake claim to the seat, paving the way for Danve, who is also a sitting MP, to contest from the seat.

Thackeray reiterated that Sena and BJP have taken up the responsibilities equally for the 2019 polls. He explained how Sena’s criticism against BJP never came in the way of public welfare projects. Citing a few examples, he said that the Samruddhi Mahamarg project saw Sena and BJP working together and ensuring farmers were given due compensation. The government should also ensure adequate fodder and drinking water for cattle and animals in drought regions, he stressed.

First uploaded on: 18-03-2019 at 02:37 IST
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