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I am like a pretty girl every boy wants, says Maharashtra minister Eknath Khadse over BJP exit rumour

Senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Eknath Khadse on Friday said the number of his admirers is increasing with each passing day.

Updated on: Dec 30, 2017, 00:11:00 IST
Hindustan Times | By
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With speculation over his hobnobbing with leaders of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Eknath Khadse on Friday said the number of his admirers is increasing with each passing day but he won’t leave the BJP.

Senior BJP leader Eknath Khadse on Friday said he will not quit the party. (HT File)
Senior BJP leader Eknath Khadse on Friday said he will not quit the party. (HT File)

“My admirers are increasing with each passing day. Different political parties are approaching me as they want me to join them. My situation these days is like a beautiful girl who every boy wants on his side. However, I cannot think of leaving BJP,” Khadse told HT. “I have given 40 years of my life to the party and cannot leave it in any circumstances. I am a true BJP activist and will remain with the party.”

Following a series of allegations, Khadse, who was considered as number two in the BJP-led Maharashtra government, was forced to resign from minister’s post on June 4 last year. Since then all his attempts to return as a minister in the government have gone in vain and this has irked the senior leader from Jalgaon.

CM Devendra Fadnavis’ recent statement that he would wait for the ACB probe to be done indicated that the BJP heavyweight’s chances of getting re-inducted in the state cabinet are less. The speculation of Khadse joining NCP triggered after the latter attended birthday celebrations of senior NCP MLA Satish Patil at Jalgaon with senior NCP leader Ajit Pawar on Thursday.

Speaking with reporters at the backdrop of the event, Khadse also said he attended the celebration but wasn’t thinking the way media reports indicated. “I had already told Ajit Pawar whatever was in my mind,” he said.

Khadse has been taking on the government since his ouster. In April, he had hosted Opposition leaders at his Jalgaon farmhouse. The opposition leaders had been to the district as part of the second leg of the ‘Sangharsh Yatra’, an agitation to seeking loan waiver for distressed farmers.

  • Faisal Malik
    ABOUT THE AUTHOR
    Faisal Malik

    Faisal Malik is a senior journalist with over two and a half decades of experience covering Maharashtra’s politics, governance and public policy with a deep understanding of the state’s political landscape. He is a Senior Assistant Editor at Hindustan Times and has been associated with its Mumbai edition for more than a decade. Based in Mumbai, Faisal currently covers three major political parties in Maharashtra — Congress, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and NCP (Sharad Pawar). Over the years, he has extensively reported on major political developments, combining investigative insights with in-depth field reporting. His coverage has spanned a wide range of issues, from drought, farmer suicides, major development projects and grassroots challenges to major electoral battles, including three Lok Sabha and Maharashtra Assembly elections — 2014, 2019 and 2024. Before joining Hindustan Times, he worked with ‘The Asian Age’ and ‘Dainik Bhaskar’. An avid tea enthusiast, he enjoys reading history, Urdu literature and classical poetry. When away from the newsroom, he writes Urdu poetry inspired by human emotions, life's experiences, meaningful reflections and relationships. An amateur photographer, Faisal is passionate about capturing moments that often go unnoticed by the naked eye.Read More