Maharashtra Congress chief Ashok Chavan claimed Saturday that Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had announced a cabinet expansion only to address the growing resentment within the BJP.
Talking to reporters here, Chavan alleged that the purpose of the expansion was not to improve governance.
"The new ministers will not be able to function as the code of conduct for assembly polls will come into force soon. Fadnavis only wants to show that he is giving a new face to his ministry by inducting new people," he said.
"The cabinet is being expanded only to put a lid on the growing discontent in the state BJP," Chavan alleged.
Ahead of the monsoon session of the state legislature which will start from June 17, Fadnavis announced Friday that there would be an expansion of the council of ministers.
Asked about minister Girish Mahajan's claim that some Congress legislators were in touch with him and were ready to switch sides, Chavan said, "Despite trying hard, the BJP will not be able to pressurize our legislators into crossing over. Congress legislators are committed to the party ideology."
Earlier, Chavan and other leaders discussed the political situation in Vidarbha and the Congress' performance in the Lok Sabha elections at a meeting here.
Party sources said that the poor showing in the polls (the Congress won only one seat in Maharashtra) was attributed to the lack of connect with the youth, factionalism and the failure to realize that the Prakash Ambedkar-led Vanchit Bahujan Agadhi would eat into Congress' votes.
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