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Pawar-Modi bonhomie, Pankaja's gaffe, Khadse's exit dominate Maharashtra politics in 2016

BJP's good showing in local polls, mammoth Maratha community marches are the other highlights

Maharashtra Revenue Minister Eknath Khadse.

Maharashtra Revenue Minister Eknath Khadse.

Press Trust of India Mumbai
The Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP's) good showing in local polls, mammoth Maratha community marches after rape and murder of a girl and exit of senior minister Eknath Khadse from the state cabinet after a series of corruption charges were some of the developments that dominated Maharashtra's political landscape in 2016.

The year also saw the Devendra Fadnavis-led government grappling with issues like acute water scarcity, prompting operation of a 'water train' to Latur in Marathwada region.

Khadse resigned in June, after a series of charges, including alleged links with mob boss Dawood Ibrahim and involvement in a multi-crore land scam in Pune.
 

Khadse, 64, was the the first high profile 'casualty' since the BJP wrested power at the Centre and the state in 2014. A panel headed by a retired Bombay High Court judge was set up to look into the Pune MIDC land deal in which Khadse's kin appeared to have a conflict of interest. It was given three months to investigate and was granted an extension later. It is yet to submit a report.

Fadnavis publicly gave a 'clean chit' to Khadse and asserted that he would be soon back in the Cabinet if the panel finds him innocent.

Demonetisation did not affect BJP's performance in last month's municipal council polls in Maharashtra. In what was touted as a referendum of sorts on the Modi government's ambitious move, BJP came out on top, notching up the highest number of seats (893 as against 396 in the 2011 polls).

BJP won 51 of the 147 municipal councils that went to the polls on November 27. This was the first time after 2001 that direct elections were held for council presidents.

It was followed by Shiv Sena with 25, Congress 23 and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) with 18 posts. Eleven Independents and 19 other candidates were also elected as municipal council presidents. BJP and Sena made the inroads at the cost of Congress and NCP, which have traditionally dominated local body polls.

The year also saw 'mook' (silent) morchas by the Maratha community, which comprises around a third of the state's population.

After holding almost 30 silent morchas across Maharashtra, the Maratha Kranti silent morcha entered Mumbai, the country's commercial capital in November in the form of a bike rally.

The Maratha reservation issue figured in the winter session of Maharashtra Legislature, with Fadnavis assuring the legislators that the state government was committed to providing reservation to the agitating Maratha community.

Maratha leaders are also demanding amendments to the controversial Scheduled Caste and Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, alleging that it is being blatantly misused by Dalits to settle personal scores.
 
The State Cabinet expansion in July saw 11 ministers taking oath as the Fadnavis government gave a greater representation to Marathas and Dhangar community. Besides BJP, allies Shiv Sena, Rashtriya Samaj Party and Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana also got representation in the expansion.

Republican Party of India (RPI) leader Ramdas Athawale was inducted in the Union Cabinet in July, boosting the morale of his party workers in Maharashtra.

In June, noted ophthalmologist and social worker Vikas Mahatme and Chhatrapati Sambhaji Raje, a descendant of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, were nominated to the Rajya Sabha. The move was seen as a political strategy of social engineering to convey the BJP's commitment to the welfare of Dhangar and Maratha communities.

Former chief minister and Congress leader Narayan Rane was among the 10 candidates who got elected unopposed to Maharashtra Legislative Council in June.

The rape and murder of a minor at Kopardi in Ahmednagar district prompted some legislators picking on critically-acclaimed Marathi movie Sairat, which lays bare the social reality of caste and the honour killings resulting from such inter-caste elopements.

Sairat, which was released this year, received a massive response in Maharashtra and was the story of love between a Dalit boy and a girl belonging to the dominant, upper caste Maratha community. NCP MLA Bhaskar Jadhav said it was creating fissures between various sections in the society.

Despite BJP and NCP being locked in a bitter fight in the state, there were occasions when Prime Minister Narendra Modi and NCP chief Sharad Pawar lauded each other.

"Pawar has completed 50 years of either being an MLA or MP, which is a legacy in itself in Indian politics. I have no hesitation in accepting that Pawar held my hand and taught me to walk in my early days in Gujarat," Modi said.

In February 2015, Modi had visited Baramati, Pawar's hometown, to inaugurate a Krishi Vigyan Kendra building and also had lunch at the NCP chief's home.

The 'Jaldoot' train supplying water from Miraj town to Latur in Marathwada made its 111th and last trip in August. Since its first run in April to then parched Latur, the train delivered 2.79 crore litre water to the drought-affected town.

The train, run jointly by Indian Railways and state government, comprised 50 wagons of water, and was operated from Miraj junction to Latur, 340 km away. The Latur civic body had stopped water supply through taps in February, after its reservoirs ran dry due to acute water scarcity in Marathwada.

In April, the water shortage prompted the Bombay High Court, ordering the shifting of 13 Indian Premier League (IPL) matches out of drought-hit Maharashtra.

Senior Maharashtra ministers Pankaja Munde and Mahadev Jankar courted controversy over their remarks.

Pankaja, Women and Child Development minister, found herself mired in a controversy with the emergence of an audio clip in which the BJP leader is reportedly heard 'threatening' a priest of Bhagwangad hill shrine to allow her to make a speech on Dussehra.

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First Published: Dec 16 2016 | 11:50 AM IST

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