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- 'Election Commission must take action': Row over Ajit Pawar's 'funds' remark; Fadnavis backs his deputy
'Election Commission must take action': Row over Ajit Pawar's 'funds' remark; Fadnavis backs his deputy
While campaigning for the Malegaon Nagar Panchayat elections in Baramati on Friday, Ajit Pawar had told voters that if they help the NCP candidates win, he will ensure that there is no shortage of funds. However, he warned that he will 'reject' them if the people 'reject' his party.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis came to the rescue of his deputy Ajit Pawar following a row over his 'you have votes and I have funds' remark, affirming that his government is dedicated to ensuring development across every region of the state. The 55-year-old was speaking to reporters on sidelines of an event in Nagpur.
"Many times lot of things are said in a speech (during election), but it does not mean the same," news agency PTI quoted Fadnavis as saying. "Even if our ally or someone had said like that, it was not their intention and they would never do such discrimination. And certainly, the people will elect Mahayuti in the coming elections, though we may fight separately in some places."
Row over Pawar's remark
While campaigning for the Malegaon Nagar Panchayat elections in Baramati tehsil of Pune district on Friday, Pawar had told voters that if they help the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) candidates win, he will ensure that there is no shortage of funds. However, he warned that he will 'reject' them if the people 'reject' his party.
It should be noted that Pawar, whose party is in alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Eknath Shinde's Shiv Sena, holds the finance portfolio in the Mahayuti government in Maharashtra.
"I will ensure there is no shortage of funds if you elect all 18 NCP candidates. If you elect all 18 candidates, I am committed to give whatever I have promised. But if you reject, I will also reject. You have votes, I have funds," he said, as reported by news agency PTI.
Opposition slams Pawar
The opposition took this opportunity to attack the Maharashtra government, asking the Election Commission of India (ECI) to take action against the deputy chief minister. "How is this happening in a democratic country? We must ask the Election Commission," Supriya Sule, NCP-SP MP and Pawar's sister, told PTI.
Congress national spokesperson Atul Londhe also attacked Pawar, calling his remarks a 'direct threat' to the voters. "No work has been done in 11 years, so now they are giving such bribes, but this is Maharashtra, and Ajit ji must have forgotten that here, dignity works, not bribes," Londhe said.