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Shah meets Shinde, Fadnavis over student protests and Sena case
A BJP leader aware of the matter said, “The Union home minister was appraised of the police action, and was told that the protest in the state was peaceful..”
MUMBAI: Union home minister Amit Shah met chief minister Devendra Fadnavis and deputy chief minister Eknath Shinde on Saturday to analyse the developments in the state following student protests—which received a sizeable response in Mumbai, Pune, and several other cities—and the ongoing hearings at the Supreme Court (SC) on a slew of petitions filed by the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT) following defections of leaders and disputes over the party name and symbol.
The absence of Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) president and deputy chief minister Sunetra Pawar from the meeting was conspicuous, particularly in the backdrop of her meeting with political strategist Prashant Kishor earlier this week.
A BJP leader aware of the matter said, “The Union home minister was appraised of the police action, and was told that the protest in the state was peaceful..”
Regarding the ongoing hearing at the SC on the party name and symbol, the leader said Shiv Sena is apprehensive about the outcome and the political fallout. “The SC is expected to deliver its verdict in the case being heard under the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution soon. Sena leaders are anxious about the decision going against them. They fear losing the party’s name and symbol, which could have a huge political impact. The leaders discussed the steps to be taken accordingly,” he said.
The three leaders also reportedly discussed a possible expansion of the Union cabinet after the ongoing monsoon session of Parliament concludes. The Shiv Sena, which currently has 13 MPs in the Lok Sabha, is expecting a larger share in the cabinet, in the form of two cabinet berths and one state ministerial post.
The leaders also reportedly discussed a possible expansion of the state cabinet and the allocation of statutory boards and corporations among the ruling allies. A Sena leader said: “Our leader also expressed dissatisfaction over the treatment meted out to Shiv Sena and the departments under the party’s control. Our party chief also spoke about the funds allocated to departments led by the party.”
On the meeting between Sunetra Pawar and Prashant Kishor, a Sena leader said, “Kishor’s party fought against the BJP in the Assembly elections and defeated a BJP candidate in a by-poll last week. Kishor has criticised the BJP and Amit Shah in the past. His appointment as political consultant by the NCP has not gone down well with the BJP.”
NUCFDC HQ to be shifted to Mumbai
Earlier in the day, Shah inaugurated the National Urban Cooperative Finance and Development Corporation (NUCFDC) office in Fort, and addressed representatives of the cooperative sector at the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE). In his address, he spoke at length about urban cooperative banks, cyber security, digital banking and regulatory reforms.
The home minister, who is under criticism from the Opposition parties for the lathicharge by the Delhi police on protesting students at Jantar Mantar on July 20, however chose not to speak about the issue.
In his speech at the BSE, Shah announced that the headquarters of the NUCFDC, which is seen as an umbrella organisation of urban cooperative banking, would be shifted to Mumbai from Delhi. “Along with Gujarat, Goa and Karnataka, Maharashtra accounts for nearly 70% of the country’s urban cooperative banking activities. Maharashtra has around 449 urban cooperative banks and the state was among three top pioneering states of cooperative movement. It would be an appropriate location for the headquarters. I have taken the decision on NUCFDC to shift their headquarters and I am sure the process will be completed soon,” he said.
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