Maharashtra Assembly polls: Devendra Fadnavis files papers in Nagpur southwest seat; banks on ‘Ladki Bahin’ scheme

Devendra Fadnavis and two other sitting BJP MLAs — Mohan Mate (Nagpur South) and Krishna Khopde ( Nagpur East) — filed their nominations at the district collectorate.

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister and BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis on Friday (October 25, 2024) said the ruling Mahayuti will retain power in the Assembly polls given its governance record and welfare measures as he filed his nomination from the Nagpur South-West constituency.

Addressing a rally before filing the papers as the BJP candidate, he said the Mahayuti government's work speaks for itself, and hit out at Opposition parties, saying the 'Ladki Bahin' scheme, targeted at poor women, and its beneficiaries were enough to defeat them in the November 20 elections.

Mr. Fadnavis, who was the Chief Minister from 2014 to 2019 and for a short tenure in November 2019, has successfully contested the Assembly polls for five times from the city — two times from Nagpur West constituency and three times from Nagpur South-West.

The BJP leader (54) is seeking re-election from Nagpur South-West in what is his sixth electoral contest from his hometown in the state's Vidarbha region. He has been an MLA for the past 25 years starting 1999.

Before filing his nomination form, Mr. Fadnavis visited Union Minister and former BJP chief Nitin Gadkari's residence. Both BJP leaders then paid floral tributes to Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar's statue at the Sanvidhan Square, followed by a roadshow from there till Akashvani Square.

Addressing a gathering at the end of the roadshow, Fadnavis said, "Our work speaks louder than our words. People can see the development in Nagpur — be it Nagpur Metro Rail, Nagpur-Mumbai Samruddhi Expressway or other development projects that have changed the face of Nagpur."

The work carried out by the BJP in the last seven-and-a-half years in the state (MVA government was in office from November 2019 to June 2022) and by the party-led Centre in the last 10 years, has changed the face of Nagpur, the second capital of Maharashtra, he said.

"I won't talk about opposition parties as our Ladki Bahin (scheme and its beneficiaries) is enough for them. Congress leaders Sunil Kedar and Nana Patole even tried to stop the Ladki Bahin Yojana by filing a petition in the Nagpur bench of the Bombay High Court," he added.

Ladki Bahin, launched a few months ago, is a flagship scheme of the Eknath Shinde-led Mahayuti government, under which underprivileged women get a stipend of ₹1,500 per month.

The Mahayuti government changed the picture of Vidarbha through several ventures, including the Gosikhurd irrigation projects, development of Nagpur and the Amravati airport and other works, noted the Deputy CM.

"The Mahayuti government is creating a new Maharashtra under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi who is creating a new India," Fadnavis emphashised.

He said his government has issued 48 Government Resolutions (GR) related to welfare measures targeted at Other Backward Classes (OBC), and challenged the Congress to show even one such notification brought during its long stint in office.

The Mahayuti government, which assumed office in June 2022, has also worked for tribals and all other sections of society, maintained the senior BJP minister.

Mr. Fadnavis and two other sitting BJP MLAs — Mohan Mate (Nagpur South) and Krishna Khopde ( Nagpur East) — filed their nominations at the district collectorate. Mr. Gadkari and State BJP chief Chandrashekhar Bawankule accompanied Mr. Fadnavis at the time.

Later addressing the media, Mr. Fadnavis opined the Congress has always been "anti-reservation" and asserted nobody can tinker with the quota provision for underprivileged communities as long as his party is around.

The Deputy CM said it is unfortunate that state Congress chief Nana Patole is supporting the "anti- reservation" stand of his party leader Rahul Gandhi.

Mr. Fadnavis thanked PM Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, BJP president JP Nadda and Mr. Gadkari for his nomination from Nagpur South-West. He said voters have seen his work and performance as an MLA for the last 25 years and will surely bless him this time, too.

"Similarly, people will also bless the Mahayuti government under Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and Mahayuti will again form government in the state," said the BJP leader.

He expressed confidence the Mahayuti alliance, which consists of the BJP, Shiv Sena and NCP, will win all the 12 Vidhan Sabha seats in Nagpur district.

To a query on a viral video of Patole, where he is heard supporting Rahul Gandhi's statement on "ending reservation", Fadnavis said the Grand old Party has always been anti-quota.

"I feel Nana Patole is a staunch Rahul Gandhi 'bhakt'. All of them, right from Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi to Rahul Gandhi, have been anti-reservation. It is unfortunate Patole is also supporting their anti-reservation stand. Nobody can touch reservation system as long as the BJP is there in the country and the Constitution is in force," he asserted.

Addressing the gathering earlier, Mr. Gadkari said what the Congress could not do in 60 years, the Mahayuti government has done in Nagpur and Maharashtra under the leadership of Fadnavis and PM Modi.

The Minister of Road Transport and Highways, the Lok Sabha member from Nagpur, said development works of more than Rs 1 lakh crore had been carried out in his constituency in the last 10 years alone.

"Maharashtra has got a very able leadership in the form of Fadnavis," he said, urging people to give the reins of the state in his party colleague's hands once again.

Polling for the 288-member Maharashtra assembly will be held on November 20 and votes will be counted three days later.

Published - October 25, 2024 05:04 pm IST