Congress leader Narayan Rane charged on Tuesday that party candidates had not received adequate funds for the Maharashtra Assembly polls and indirectly blamed the former Chief Minister, Prithviraj Chavan.
Amid speculation that party funds worth Rs. 10 crore had been stolen, Mr. Rane told reporters: “I do not know about money being stolen but it is true that candidates did not receive enough money. The responsibility for ensuring they got party funds lay with Mr. Chavan.”
The leader claimed that several party candidates had not contested the elections seriously.
“There should be an internal probe into why party funds were not received and which candidates shirked their responsibilities including organising rallies in their constituencies,” Mr. Rane said.
Criticising Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis’ support for statehood for Vidarbha, Mr. Rane said, “Fadnavis has no right to talk about a separate Vidarbha when he is the Chief Minister of the entire State.”
Mr. Rane said the Chief Minister did not have the administrative experience to run the State and the only strong Minister in the Cabinet was Revenue Minister Eknath Khadse, who had made a failed bid for the top post. The latter had served in the Cabinet when Mr. Rane was Chief Minister in the Shiv Sena-BJP government.
Mr. Rane, who lost the election from Kudal, has also said he will not contest another Assembly poll. “This does not mean I am retiring from politics. I have not decided about contesting legislative council polls or Lok Sabha polls.”
