Senior OBC leader and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) minister in state cabinet Chhagan Bhujbal on Sunday accused his former boss Sharad Pawar of working with an intention to set Maharashtra on fire over reservation issue. Bhujbal was speaking in Sharad Pawar’s home ground Baramati at the party’s Jan-sanman yatra, where senior NCP leaders including Ajit Pawar were also present.
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Bhujbal said on a sensitive issue like reservation, it was expected that Sharad Pawar would attend the meeting called by the state government last week. However, after a call from Baramati, opposition leaders decided to skip the meeting.
“When serious issues like reservation come up for discussion, it was expected that Sharad Pawar as senior leader should have been there (for a meeting). It is being told that when all the leaders were about to come, a call was made from Baramati at around 5 pm and leaders in the opposition suddenly boycotted the meeting,” said the senior NCP leader who has been opposing Marathas being considered as Kunbis, a sub-caste which enjoys reservation under OBC quota.
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Chief Minister Eknath Shinde had convened an all-party meeting on July 9 to discuss the OBC-Maratha reservation to maintain social harmony. The meeting was convened amid protest from both sides as pro-quota Maratha activists have been demanding reservation from the OBC category which the members of the Other Backward Class strongly opposed. While the opposition leaders skipped the meeting even as the protest escalated tension in Maharashtra.
“It is okay if you are angry with Ajit Pawar and Chhagan Bhujbal, but what has the OBC community done to you? Why are you not coming with us to end this deadlock,” Bhujbal asked, adding, “The leaders are being told and counselled from behind. This way attempts are being made to set Maharashtra on fire.”
The Sharad Pawar-led NCP (SP) however countered the allegations with party executive president Supriya Sule asking for call detail records of the leader to ascertain the phone call which Chhagan Bhujbal spoke about.
“Is there any proof in what Bhujbal said? Let us get the Call Details Records,” said Sule. On being asked why opposition leaders did not attend the meeting, Sule said, “We had asked for a proposal (about the meeting) since we are not against any community. Opposition leaders are speaking on OBC reservation now but I have been talking about it for the past 10 years in Parliament which is the place to speak on this issue.”
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Earlier in his speech, Bhujbal said the reservation issue has become a hot topic and there are attempts by some to create tension between the two communities (OBCs and Marathas) and orchestrate riots in the state.
To end this deadlock, there was an all-party meeting called by the chief minister back at Sahyadri guest house.
“I called up the leader of opposition in the state assembly Vijay Wadettiwar and NCP (SP) member Jitendra Awhad, gave them documents on what the law says and also urged them to bring Sharad Pawar for the meeting since he was the one who implemented OBC reservation in Maharashtra after VP Singh govt took a call on it,” said Bhujbal.
Vijay Wadettiwar while responding to senior NCP leader’s allegations said, “Bhujbal is levelling false accusations. There was no question that he would bring Sharad Pawar to attend the meeting.”
Aisha Patel is a dedicated Indian correspondent with a deep understanding of the nation’s diverse affairs. With a background in Indian culture, politics, and current events, she provides in-depth analysis and timely reporting on domestic issues within India.
