It’s an ugly display of money and muscle power by BJP: Prithviraj Chavan

The former CM on the ‘systematic destruction’ of the political system by the ruling party, bringing new faces into the Congress leadership, and the stress on senior party leaders due to the ‘extraordinary’ exodus

October 09, 2019 12:59 am | Updated 12:59 am IST - Mumbai

Mumbai, 25/04/2019: Picture to go with Alok Deshpande’s interview.  Congress leader Prithviraj Chavan in Mumbai.  Photo: Vivek Bendre / The Hindu

Mumbai, 25/04/2019: Picture to go with Alok Deshpande’s interview. Congress leader Prithviraj Chavan in Mumbai. Photo: Vivek Bendre / The Hindu

Campaigning in Karad South Assembly segment in Satara district, former chief minister Prithviraj Chavan is fighting a lone battle. All his trusted aides — there were few to begin with — have left the Congress either for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) or the Shiv Sena. In a triangular fight, he is pitted against Atul Bhosle of the BJP, an education and sugar baron, and independent candidate Udaysinh Patil, son of Mr. Chavan’s arch rival, former MLA Vilaskaka Undalkar-Patil. In a conversation with The Hindu on the campaign trail, Mr. Chavan talks about how the lure of money has overpowered loyalties, why Congress leaders are unable to set a poll agenda and how former prime minister Manmohan Singh advised him not to snatch scientists’ glory after Chandrayaan I.

You seem to be concentrating solely on your seat. Are you facing a tough battle on your home turf?

What you are seeing today in western Maharashtra is an ugly display of money and muscle power by the BJP. The people who were with us are suddenly going to the other camp. It is turning into a joke now. Even the voters are realising that those who are shifting loyalties are doing it for the sake of money or under some threat. I am facing difficulties as well due to this. But I have not lost touch with my constituency in the last five years and I am confident that despite all the talk, I will win.

Why are so many people leaving Congress and NCP?

I will limit myself to western Maharashtra. Loyalty to a party or an ideology is rapidly becoming a thing of the past. What the BJP is doing is systematic destruction of democratic and constitutional values with a single aim of eliminating the opposition completely. It aims at one party dictatorship. The amount of money that is being spent is unimaginable. It is extremely difficult to match and naturally, this will lead to politics being limited to a certain few.

Will the old guard quitting the party mean that new faces are given opportunities of importance?

Yes, new leadership will come. But it will take time. It cannot happen overnight. We have to face the brunt of this systematic destruction of political system by the BJP till then.

The BJP is trying to make Article 370 an election issue in Maharashtra. Do you think the State polls will revolve around it?

The BJP wants it to happen and I am sure that once [Prime Minister Narendra] Modi and [BJP national president Amit] Shah start addressing rallies, they will rake up this issue. But I do not think that Article 370 is an election issue any more in western Maharashtra. The polls are about ground issues, such as sugar cane price from mills. These are State polls. We are fighting on State issues.

There are issues like unemployment, economic slowdown and the agrarian crisis. But the BJP does not seem to be suffering electorally. Is the Opposition unable to provide a credible alternative?

The same farmers who are suffering due to the destruction of the rural economy are voting for the BJP. That’s the reality. The urban voter is yet to realise the dangers and future implications of the economic slowdown. At the same time, voters’ attention is being diverted using issues such as Balakot, like it happened in Lok Sabha polls. Scientific achievements like Chandrayaan are painted in different colours and [turned into] PR events. I remember when Dr. Manmohan Singh was the prime minister and I was handling the PM Office, Chandrayaan I was successfully launched. Dr. Singh stopped me from going to the ISRO headquarters. He told me it is the scientists of ISRO who should get all the fame and limelight, not us. Look, where we have come now.

The Maharashtra Congress seems to be in a dormant mode. It is neither raking up aggressive issues nor launching an impressive poll campaign. What has gone wrong?

All our senior leaders are contesting elections. Be it me, Balasaheb Thorat, Ashok Chavan or Vijay Vadettiwar in Vidarbha — the exodus from our party isn’t a secret to anyone — every leader is being forced to carry out multiple responsibilities. The circumstances are extraordinary. One may feel that leaders are not seen on the front line. But I am sure that the real picture will be different on the day of poll results.

The Supreme Court has given the go-ahead to prosecute Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, which is an extremely rare case. How do you see it playing out?

The apex court’s order proves that Fadnavis hid criminal cases. The trial is about whether he will face punishment or not. It is up to his conscience to take the next decision.

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