Amit Shah strategises for Lok Sabha polls with Maha BJP-Sena leaders

Chief minister Eknath Shinde, deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, BJP state unit chief Chandrashekhar Bawankule, city unit chief Ashish Shelar and other key leaders were among those who met Shah. After his arrival at Mumbai Airport around 8 pm on Saturday

Mumbai: Union home minister Amit Shah, who is on a two-day visit to Mumbai, held a series of meetings with party leaders at the Sahyadri guesthouse at Malabar Hill on Saturday night. The leader reportedly discussed the situation in the state in the context of the next Lok Sabha elections and the preparations for the upcoming local body polls expected later this year.

After his arrival at Mumbai Airport around 8 pm on Saturday, Shah went to senior party leader Vinod Tawde’s residence at Vile Parle to pay homage to his mother, Vijaya, who passed away early this week. From there he headed to the Sahyadri guesthouse and held meetings with party leaders till late on Saturday. (HT Photo)

Chief minister Eknath Shinde, deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, BJP state unit chief Chandrashekhar Bawankule, city unit chief Ashish Shelar and other key leaders were among those who met Shah. After his arrival at Mumbai Airport around 8 pm on Saturday, Shah went to senior party leader Vinod Tawde’s residence at Vile Parle to pay homage to his mother, Vijaya, who passed away early this week. From there he headed to the Sahyadri guesthouse and held meetings with party leaders till late on Saturday.

According to sources, Shah, who is regarded as number two in the party after prime minister Narendra Modi, reviewed the preparations for the upcoming elections. “Being the second largest state after Uttar Pradesh in terms of the number of Lok Sabha seats, Maharashtra is an important state for the party,” said a BJP leader. “Against the backdrop of the discouraging reports in the recent state legislature elections, the party leadership is taking due care.”

The party leader added that after the split in the Shiv Sena last year, and the snapping of ties with its oldest ally in 2019, retaining the winning seats was a challenge for the party. “A section of state leaders is of the opinion that the Shinde faction of the Shiv Sena has not been able to create an impact that will help it perform on par with the 2019 LS elections,” he said. The BJP-Sena alliance had won 41 seats in the last Lok Sabha elections.

Besides organisational strengthening right from the booth level to the implementation of the Lok Sabha Pravas drive aimed at winning the constituencies that were lost in the last election, Shah also discussed strategies for the elections. The party is aiming to win 45 LS seats in Maharashtra. “The Supreme Court ruling on the state’s political crisis is expected soon,” the BJP leader said. “The discussion on its fallout and the strategy to be adopted in its wake was discussed. The potential seat-sharing with the Shinde camp and other allies, and preparations in the constituencies that will come to the party were also discussed. The state leaders were told to take central and state schemes to the voters more effectively, as that can reap benefits in the polls.”

Shah met leaders in groups and some key leaders like Shinde and Fadnavis in one-on-one meetings. Senior party leaders Chandrakant Patil and Pankaja Munde, who were recently in a controversy over their statements, were not part of the delegations.

In the meeting with the core committee for the Mumbai unit, Shah reportedly told party leaders to concentrate on infrastructure projects and welfare schemes to woo voters. The leader was apprised by the Mumbai leaders about the projects that are about to be completed ahead of the civic polls and the ones expected to be completed before the Lok Sabha polls next year.

The state leaders also discussed the alliance of the three opposition parties and the challenge that could be posed if they fought together in the local body, Lok Sabha and Assembly polls. They reportedly discussed the possibility of poaching leaders from other parties to help the BJP to better its performance. Shah also discussed the party’s defeat in the Kasba Peth bypoll and two legislative council seat polls in Vidarbha in the last four months.

Shinde personally supervises Maharashtra Bhushan award preparations

Chief minister Eknath Shinde took stock of the preparations for the Maharashtra Bhushan award ceremony by visiting the venue twice on Saturday. The highest state award is being conferred on social worker and reformer Dattatreya Narayan Appasaheb Dharmadhikari by Union home minister Amit Shah at the International Corporate park at Kharghar, Navi Mumbai.

“It will be a grand function in the presence of lakhs of followers of Shri Dharmadhikari. We have ensured that no inconvenience will be caused to the people attending it,” Shinde said after visiting the venue.

According to rough estimates, over half a million followers are expected to attend the function. Besides 2,100 taps and 250 tankers for drinking water, makeshift wash rooms, 69 ambulances, 350 doctors, sanitation machinery and 25 fire tenders have been deployed at the venue. CIDCO, the Navi Mumbai municipal corporation, the police force and other government authorities have been roped in for the ceremony.