Chavan quitting is not enough, says opposition
Opposition parties in the state have welcome the ouster of Chief Minister Ashok Chavan, but have also demanded punitive action against all those involved in the Adarsh society scam.
Opposition parties in the state have welcome the ouster of Chief Minister Ashok Chavan, but have also demanded punitive action against all those involved in the Adarsh society scam.
Shiv Sena executive president Uddhav Thackeray said that apart from Chavan, all the politicians, bureaucrats as well as defence officials involved in the scam should face action.
“Not only Chavan, but all other ministers including Narayan Rane and Vilasrao Deshmukh, whose involvement is found, should be asked to go,” said Uddhav.
Names of Chavan’s predecessors Rane, Deshmukh and Sushil Kumar Shinde have cropped up in Adarsh scam. Besides, 16 serving and retired bureaucrats also seemed to have been benefited by way of flat allotments.
Uddhav’s bête noire and estranged cousin Raj Thackeray, who heads the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS), said there would hardly be any effect on the whole scenario with the change of guard. “Chavan’s departure would not stop such cases. Action should be taken against those who allotted flats at Adarsh and also officials who signed the files,” said Raj.
The BJP called it a late reaction by the Congress. “Chavan should have resigned after the scam broke out,” said Vinod Tawade, state BJP general secretary. “The Congress leadership was forced to take this step due to the pressure built by both the public and the media.”
Tawde demanded that roles played by Chavan aides like Jayant Shah, whose son is among the list of Adarsh allottees, should also be probed.
Even the Samajwadi Party did not let go of the opportunity to target the government. They described Chavan’s resignation as the Diwali gift for the people of Maharashtra. “Chavan’s government was the most corrupt and always bowed before the builder lobby,” said Abu Azmi, Samajwadi Party leader.