Maharashtra governor BS Koshyari begins three-day Marathwada tour

AURANGABAD: Maharashtra governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari on Thursday began his three-day tour of Marathwada region in the state by visiting Nanded, where he said that going on field and learning different things was his nature.
Speaking at the Swami Ramanand Teerth Marathwada University at Nanded, he said due to the coronavirus pandemic, he could not step out much earlier.
The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), a key constituent of the Shiv Sena-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government in Maharashtra, has earlier accused Koshyari of trying to create two power centres and encroaching on the rights of the state government by not only touring the state, but also holding meetings with district collectors and seeking information about various government works.
"Going on field...on the ground and learning different things is my nature. If I learn anything, I can share that with others. But due to the pandemic, I couldn't go out much. I had a wish to visit Nanded. I would have visited Nanded even if I was not the governor of Maharashtra," Koshyari said.
"We have to follow Covid-19 appropriate behaviour and because of that, even if I wished, I couldn't come here earlier...Guru Gobind Singh, Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, Chandrashekhar Azad and other freedom fighters are no less than Lord Rama and Lord Krishna for me," he said.
The governor, who had earlier served as chief minister of Uttarakhand, also lamented that people don't know the contribution of those who worked for the country's freedom.
"We experience freedom today. But it is unfortunate that people today don't know their contribution. That is why I wished to visit Nanded," he said.
The governor also visited Hazur Sahib Sachkhand Gurdwara in Nanded.
An official said that the governor will visit Hingoli and Parbhani districts during his three-day tour of Marathwada.
During the tour, he is scheduled to hold a meeting with district officials at the circuit house in Hingoli. He will also visit Vasantrao Naik Agriculture University in Parbhani and a bamboo-related project, among others, the official said.
Meanwhile, the NCP on Thursday warned of holding a protest against Koshyari if his review meeting at the Parbhani district collectorate scheduled on Friday was not cancelled.
The party alleged that the governor was trampling upon the rights of the public representatives by holding meetings with the bureaucrats.
In a statement, NCP's Parbhani district president Kiran Sontakke said, "Governor Koshyari will be holding a meeting in Parbhani district collector office on Friday at 4 pm. Through such meetings, he is trampling upon the rights of the public representatives and the people who have elected them."
"This is disrespectful to the elected public representatives, elected members and ministers as they have the right to hold such meetings," he said.
"If the governor's meeting at the collector office is not cancelled, then the NCP will protest outside it by wearing black caps and waving black flags," Sontakke said.
Earlier this week, Maharashtra minister and NCP's chief spokesperson Nawab Malik had accused Koshyari of trying to create two power centres and encroaching on rights of the state government. Malik had alleged that the governor inaugurated some projects without communicating about them to the state government.
The NCP leader had accused the governor of stepping onto the state government's domain.