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Amit Shah in Pune on November 26: Visit to PMC to galvanise BJP cadre
According to BJP leaders, Amit Shah will lay the foundation stone for a proposed statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji on the premises of the PMC headquarters, after attending a cooperative sector-related function at the Vaikunthbhai Mehtra Institute
PUNE Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s visit to Pune on November 26 has become crucial, not just for the co-operative sector, but for the municipal elections in Pune and rest of state as well.
Shah, who is also Union minister for cooperatives, will visit the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) and address party workers and booth heads in the city
Earlier, it was decided that his visit would be primarily as co-operative minister, but the BJP’s state and city units decided to use his presence to campaign for municipal elections. The BJP’s state leadership - opposition leader Devendra Fadnavis and state unit president Chandrakant Patil - will also be present at these programmes,.
Mayor Murlidhar Mohol said, “We requested the home minister to visit the PMC and he has given his consent for it. It is important Shah is visiting the PMC before the municipal elections.”
According to BJP leaders, Shah will lay the foundation stone for a proposed statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji on the premises of the PMC headquarters, after attending a cooperative sector-related function at the Vaikunthbhai Mehtra Institute.
He will also be present at a function where a statue of Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar wil be unveiled. Later, Shah will attend a party function at the Ganesh Kala Krida auditorium, where he will address workers and booth pramukhs (chiefs), said BJP leader Ganesh Bidkar. “Shah’s visit to Pune and PMC ahead of the civic elections is definitely important for party workers as it will boost our morale. The party is extremely enthusiastic about it,” said Bidkar.
The PMC elections are likely to happen in February-March next year with BJP trying its best to retain control over the civic body. Through Shah’s visit, BJP plans to kickstart its campaign for election and galvanise its machinery.
According to BJP city unit president Jagdish Mulik the party has organised the party meeting at the Ganesh Kala Krida Manch in Swargate. “We got confirmation for this. Opposition leader Devendra Fadnavis and other state leaders will be present. We have started meetings to prepare for this,” he said.
The state co-operative department officials have also confirmed Shah’s tour.
Maharashtra has a large number of co-operative institutes with politics centred around the co-operative sector, with several NCP and Congress leaders controlling institutions in western parts of the state.
Though co-operatives has till recently been a state subject, it was for the first time that the central government started this ministry. Political observers see that by creating a separate cooperative ministry, headed by a senior minister like Amit Shah, the BJP is trying to establish its grip over the sector, while keeping a vigilance on activities of cooperative institutes run by the Congress and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leaders.
Recently, NCP president Sharad Pawar invited Shah to visit the Vasantdada Sugar Institute (VSI) in Manjari.
