As Ashok Chavan leaves the Congress, Uddhav defends the BJP, asking, “Is BJP’s self-confidence that low?

Shiv Sena UBT chief Uddhav Thackeray took a jab at the BJP-led NDA government in the state on Monday, asking whether the ruling party was experiencing “low self-confidence” in advance of the state’s Lok Sabha elections, following the resignation of former chief minister and Congress leader Ashok Chavan.

The former chief minister elaborated on his assertion on the governing NDA in the state, asking why, if it wasn’t anxious and worried about losing the next general elections, it felt the need to snatch figures from the opposition camp.
Chavan dealt a further blow to the unity of the Opposition and the INDIA group by resigning as an MLA and announcing his departure from the Congress, although he did not provide any details about his future political plans.

Sena (UBT) Supremo, however, said that the former chief minister may be associating himself with the BJP.
Speaking at a rally on Monday in Sambhajinagar (formerly Aurangabad), Uddhav unleashed a barrage of criticism on the BJP, claiming that if it had served the people’s interests during its ten years in power at the Centre, it wouldn’t have felt the need to split the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) and entice leaders away from the party.

“In Parliament, Prime Minister Narendra Modi declared that the BJP would win a landslide majority in the Lok Sabha elections. If such is the case, why entice leaders from opposing parties? Why are they snatching opposition leaders if they are so sure they would go “400-paar” in the next elections? They brought Ashok Chavan, Ajit Pawar, and (CM Eknath) Shinde here, and they brought Nitish Kumar in Bihar. The BJP would not have needed to break up the opposition if they had really served the people throughout their ten years at the center. Is this the lowest point in the BJP’s self-confidence before the upcoming elections? said Uddhav.

Chavan was a Cabinet minister in the previous MVA administration, whose chief minister further said that the latter would be called a “traitor” if he left the Congress.
Uddhav said, “We did not think Ashok Chavan would leave us in this manner. He was with us till yesterday. I won’t level accusations just because he left the Congress. However, it begs the question, what would he gain from this? They’ll call him a traitor.

In a jab at the BJP, he said that the group had brought in so many Congressmen that a former member of the grand old party may soon run the party nationally.

The Congress Mukta Bharat slogan was raised by the BJP, however that goal was not achieved. They have really taken over so many Congress leaders that they now resemble Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), with the Congress controlling the BJP. A former Congress leader will soon head the BJP nationwide since there are now so many prominent members of the Congress party inside the party, according to Uddhav.

Chavan gave PCC president Nana Patole his resignation earlier in the day from the Congress’s main membership.
Chavan also announced his resignation from the Maharashtra Assembly on his official X account.
“I submitted my resignation as a member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) from the 85-Bhokar Assembly Constituency to Assembly Speaker Rahulji Narvekar on February 12, 2024,” Chavan wrote on X.

It was said that Chavan, the MLA for Bhokar in Nanded, had a falling out with state Congress president Patole.
Chavan is the third well-known figure to leave the Maharashtra Congress after former MP Milind Deora of South Mumbai and former MLA Baba Siddique.
In addition, the former MPCC president was a member of the Lok Sabha from 1987 to 1989. In May 2014, he was re-elected to the Lower House. From 1986 until 1995, he served as the Maharashtra Pradesh Youth Congress Committee’s vice president and general secretary.
From 1999 till May 2014, he was a member of the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly for three terms.
Also, from December 8, 2008, to November 9, 2010, he was the Chief Minister of Maharashtra. The Congress requested that he step down from office on November 9, 2010, because to accusations of corruption over the Adarsh Housing Society scandal.

Chavan was elected from the Nanded constituency in the general elections of 2014, however he lost the seat to BJP candidate Pratap Patil Chikhalikar in 2019.
He is the son of Shankarrao Chavan, the former Union Home Minister and Maharashtra chief minister.

Regarding Chavan’s resignation, former Rajya Sabha MP for the Congress, Sanjay Nirupam, said that the former was dissatisfied with the manner in which a Maharashtra-based leader conducted business.
“Ashok Chavan was unquestionably useful to the group. These are just hurried responses; some are holding ED accountable and labeling him a liability. In essence, he was not happy with the way a Maharashtra-based leader worked,” Nirupam wrote on X.
The former head of the Mumbai Regional Congress Committee also said that Chavan would not have quit if the party had responded to his objections.
“He (Chavan) has sometimes voiced his concerns to the highest levels of authority. The problem wouldn’t have reached this point if their objections had been treated seriously, Nirupam said.

“Ashok Chavan is resourceful, a skilled organizer, has a firm grasp on the ground and is a serious leader,” Nirupam said, showered with praise for the former chief minister. The whole leadership had seen his talent in person during the five days that “Bharat Jodo Yatra” spent in Nanded last year.

For us, his departure from Congress is a great loss. This loss cannot be compensated for by anybody. In a subtle jab at the state leadership of the Congress, he said, “The onus was on us to take care of assets like him.”