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Maha polls: Narayan Rane merges party with BJP, CM rallies behind Nitesh against Sena
Former chief minister Narayan Rane on Tuesday merged his political outfit, Maharashtra Swabhimaan Paksha (MSP), with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the presence
Former chief minister Narayan Rane on Tuesday merged his political outfit, Maharashtra Swabhimaan Paksha (MSP), with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the presence of chief minister Devendra Fadnavis.
The CM also campaigned for Rane’s son Nitesh who is contesting from Kankavli in Sindhudurg district. The Shiv Sena has fielded a candidate opposite Nitesh. In a snub to the Shiv Sena, Fadnavis said he was confident that Nitesh will get around one-third of the votes in the constituency.
Rane is a member of the Rajya Sabha from the BJP’s quota, while Nitesh formally joined the BJP before filing nomination for the Assembly elections. On Tuesday, Rane’s other son Nilesh, a former MP, and other office-bearers of the MSP also joined the BJP. This is Rane’s third political party, after the Shiv Sena and Congress. He quit the Congress two years ago. The BJP is using Rane’s clout in Sindhudurg district of coastal Konkan to increase its footprint in the region, which has been a Sena stronghold.
Nitesh, who had won on a Congress ticket in 2014, is now a BJP candidate, while the Sena nominated Satish Sawant, a former aide of senior Rane against him. The Sena decision has led to a showdown between the two parties, with Rane fielding independent candidates against Sena nominees in neighbouring two constituencies and local BJP workers supporting them.
Fadnavis campaigned for Rane despite Sena’s reservation. “We do not see any challenge in Kankavli. It is not overconfidence... Today I will also say that Nitesh will get over 65% of votes here and win,” he said.
The tension between the allies is likely to intensify further as Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray will address a rally in Kankavli on Wednesday to campaign for Sawant.
Rane, whose induction in the BJP was stiffly opposed by the Shiv Sena, said he thought a lot before joining the BJP. “I have joined the BJP after much thinking...I have not joined expecting anything in return. Many people questioned why I am joining the BJP… My only aim is to see Sindhudurg being developed into a world-class tourist destination with an end to poverty and creation of job opportunities. For the past few years, its progress has stagnated. A number of projects are pending. It’s essential that these projects are completed,” Rane said.
The chief minister, while outlining the development work in Konkan region, said the ambitious Sea World project has not moved ahead in the past five years. “We have not been able to go ahead with it due to land acquisition hurdles... Today, I assure you Rane saheb, work on your dream project will start after two years of the next government,” Fadnavis said.
In a lighter vein, Fadnavis said that while Nitesh was aggressive as an MLA, the BJP would teach him the quality of restraint. “We do not want to put a brake on his aggression, we will imbibe the quality of restraint into him [Nitesh]…this way, he will soon match up to his father who has shown himself to be both aggressive when required and restrained when the occasion demanded,” Fadnavis said.
