In Maharashtra’s sugar belt, Modi vs Pawar battle enters a not-so-sweet territory

PUNE: A day after alluding to him as a “bhatakti aatma” (wandering soul) who spooks even his family members’ plans because he couldn’t fulfil his, PM Narendra Modi resumed his tirade against NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar on Tuesday with a call to show the “kaddaavar neta” (political stalwart) his place for repeatedly failing his voters.

The PM, who attended three rallies in Maharashtra, also questioned how Congress could aspire to form the next govt at the Centre without fielding candidates in enough seats.

“A party that once had 400 MPs doesn’t have a presence in 250 seats. It isn’t even in the race,” he said in Osmanabad. “Please tell me, in our country, if any party wants to form govt, won’t it need to win more than 272 seats? They do not have (strong) candidates in that many seats, yet are dreaming of coming to office.”

At Malshiras in Solapur district, the focus of Modi’s speech was Pawar and his legacy. “It is said that looking at the setting sun, he had taken a vow to ensure water supply to drought-hit areas of this constituency. Was he able to supply you with water,” the PM asked the gathering thrice.

“Unko saja deneka samay aa gaya hai (time has come to punish him),” he then declared to a chorus of agreement from the crowd.

Modi recalled that 15 years ago, the stalwart he was referring to contested Madha Lok Sabha seat, where BJP has fielded sitting MP Ranjitsinh Naik Nimbalkar against NCP (SP) candidate Dhairyasheel Mohite Patil in this election.

“People in Maharashtra never hold themselves back when they shower someone with their love . But if that person fails to fulfil promises, the public settles scores when the time comes,” Modi said. Pawar, whom he didn’t name once, also let down farmers whose grievances he had promised to redress as Union agricultural minister in the erstwhile UPA govt. “

Modi also recalled the period when several sugar mills in Maharashtra and Gujarat were allegedly harassed over income tax. “The ‘kaddaavar neta’ was then agriculture minister, and I was CM of Gujarat. I wrote to him and also met him with a request to resolve this issue. He did nothing. It was after NDA came to office that we gave Rs 10,000 crore worth of tax relief to these sugar mills."


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