MUMBAI: CM Devendra Fadnavis on Sunday said the state government will submit a detailed report on the MoUs worth Rs 30 lakh crore signed at the World Economic Forum in Davos last month as well as the status of previous deals. Earlier today, the opposition demanded a white paper on such previous agreements.After the Opposition once again boycotted the usual tea party on the eve of the Budget session, Fadnavis told reporters at the state guest house, Sahyadri, that 13 bills would be introduced during the one-month session. He said that there are two pending bills from the previous session, and all of them will be approved. “We will give enough time for discussions,” he said. He said the death of CM Ajit Pawar meant that it was his responsibility to present the budget.
The opposition, which spoke to the media separately, also cited the plane crash to question the government. “The government has given only two lines of clarification that no one should raise questions about the incident. Why not? Is it a conspiracy or an accident? This matter is being discussed across the country,” Congress MLA Vijay Wadettiwar said. The Prime Minister pointed out the absence of the Nationalist Congress Party (SP) from the opposition press conference, the signing of a six-page letter from the opposition by former group MLA Sharad Pawar, and several grammatical errors in the letter highlighting 18 issues.
Sena (UBT) MLA Bhaskar Jadhav later said that the NCP (SP) network reached late for the meeting due to some communication gaps. “But we are all together as MVA,” he emphasized. While Sena (UBT) MLA Aaditya Thackeray pointed to the vacant posts of Leader of Opposition in both the Houses and asked why the Mahutti government was “afraid” of the position when it has a brute majority, Fadnavis said decisions should be taken by the Assembly Speaker and the Speaker of the Legislative Council. Congress MLC Satej Patel has demanded the resignation of NCP’s Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Minister Narare Zerowal over a bribery case involving an employee attached to his office in Mantriyala. The Prime Minister said his name did not appear in the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) investigation. Admitting that the incident is affecting the government’s image, Fadnavis said, “We have no tolerance towards corruption and that is why we see many cases where necessary action is taken.
I have given clear instructions to the ACB that if any act of corruption is found in its office, it must take necessary action.” Thackeray also criticized Maheoti, saying there was growing rivalry among her ministers, likely referring to Fadnavis and MP Eknath Shinde, over who is the “IR man” in the government. He also criticized the government for giving compensation of only Rs 5 lakh to the family of the Mulund Metro concrete barrier crash victim. Wadettiwar claimed that the new trade deal between India and the US would “break the backs of farmers” and referred to the ongoing farmer suicide crisis in Maharashtra. Shinde urged the opposition to attend the budget session and not sit on the steps of Vidhan Bhavan and oppose the government. He added, “The government will address all issues raised by the opposition in the House of Representatives.”
