MUMBAI: Maharashtra deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Saturday said there is no race for the chief minister’s post in Mahayuti.
He told TOI, “We have secured an unprecedented victory. It was a tsunami of a different kind, and the entire opposition has almost been wiped out, but there is no race for the CM’s post. The decision on the new CM will be taken by senior netas of Shiv Sena, NCP and the BJP high command.”
Fadnavis attributed Mahayuti’s victory to the faith of the people of Maharashtra in the leadership of PM Narendra Modi. “It’s a fact that during the Lok Sabha elections, our performance was not up to the mark. In the post-LS polls period, people realised BJP was targeted by divisive and anti-national forces. They took revenge and voted in favour of Mahayuti. We are grateful to the people of Maharashtra for expressing confidence in Modi’s leadership,” he said.
Fadnavis said Modi’s slogan of ‘ek hain toh safe hain,’ combined with the Ladki Bahin scheme, was the game-changer. “With the slogan, people indeed felt they were safe under the leadership of Modi. As a result, even on the day of polling, the electorate took the view ‘ek hain toh safe hain’ and ‘Mahayuti hain toh safe hain,'” he said.
He added the Ladki Bahin scheme was “implemented in letter and spirit and in future too, payment will be made as per schedule.” He said the priority of the new govt would be to complete ongoing infrastructure projects in a time-bound manner. “We are determined to complete projects on schedule and to develop Mumbai as a world-class city,” he said.
Fadnavis said Mahayuti had to pay a heavy price for its failure to reply to fake narratives set by MVA politicians during LS polls. “We took note of it and replied to all the fake narratives with full force, and we made it clear to people how MVA was misleading them,” he added.
Fadnavis said MVA had alleged Mahayuti was set to abolish reservations and make changes to the Constitution. “We were able to successfully impress upon the people that it was BJP which ensured implementation of Dr Ambedkar’s Constitution. People were convinced; therefore, they voted for us,” he said.
Fadnavis also said all-out efforts were made to divide people in the name of religion and caste during Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra, but Mahayuti thwarted all attempts with Modi’s slogan ‘ek hain toh safe hain.’ “We united all communities and people from all walks of life,” he noted.
Further, Fadnavis said farmers too were taken for a ride by MVA with its fake narratives, but BJP convinced them and submitted to them that BJP would tackle the agrarian crisis as top priority.