Mumbai: Claiming that the Shiv Sena has entered into pacts with many political parties in the State, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said this shows their desperation for votes.
Addressing a rally in Kandivali on Sunday, Mr. Fadnavis, who is the BJP’s star campaigner for the civic polls, said, “The Shiv Sena seems to have pacts with other parties, not just in Mumbai but across the State. Apart from their understanding with the Congress in Mumbai, they also seem to have an understanding with parties like the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) in Latur. It is their desperation for votes that is making them have pacts with parties that Balasaheb Thackeray had fought against. This election has exposed the real face of the party.”
Highlighting development projects taken up by his government, including getting clearance for the Coastal Road, widening the transport network with the Metro and elevated roads to ease the transport problem in the city, he said, “Mumbai is not yet an international-level city, and is not able to attract tourists because of the Shiv Sena.” Mr. Fadnavis said he was seeking votes for the city’s development.
He added: “It is really unfortunate that despite being in power for so many years, the Shiv Sena refuses to talk about their work, because they have no works to show. One had expected a party that has been in power for so long to talk about their works and their vision, at least on the eve of elections, but that does not seem to be happening.”
Mr. Fadnavis said the Sena seems to have adopted a strategy of ‘if you can’t convince them, confuse them’. “But, we will continue to rake up various scams involving them,” he said. He told those assembled that ₹180 crore had been spent on just making plans on paper for sewage treatment plants, which are yet to be materialise. He said smaller citiies like Nanded and Nagpur have already got them.
Earlier in the day, Mumbai BJP chief Ashish Shelar criticised the Sena campaign which claims credit for building flyovers in Mumbai. “It was the then Public Works Department Minister Nitin Gadkari who built 55 flyovers in Mumbai in just four years (1995-99). The Sena is lying if it claims credit for building them. Had those flyovers not been built, people would have had to spend hours just to reach the airport,” Mr. Shelar said.
