09 December,2025 01:59 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
Sachin Ahir. Pic/X
Shiv Sena (UBT) MLA Sachin Ahir on Tuesday questioned the Centre's seriousness toward electoral reforms expected to be discussed in Parliament, stating that despite multiple instances and evidence presented in the public domain, the government appears unwilling to address the issue.
"Is the present government serious about this? Because when you see so much evidence and so many examples that have been pointed out - and we have them, we have already placed them in the public domain - Parliament is the only place where the law can be changed. But the unfortunate part is that the government does not seem very interested," Ahir said.
He expressed hope that the ongoing Parliament session would adopt "a democratic course" and act on concerns arising from "deeply untrustworthy events happening all over India," particularly in regions where public confidence has been shaken.
Speaking separately in Nagpur, Ahir criticised the Maharashtra government over alleged corruption, saying, "The government has no money to help the farmers, but crores of rupees are found with MLAs and ministers. It is clear how corrupt this state is becoming."
Ahir's remarks come amid heightened political scrutiny over electoral processes and governance issues ahead of key elections.
Meanwhile, Shiv Sena (UBT) legislator Aaditya Thackeray on Monday asserted 22 MLAs from a Mahauti ally have "grown close" to Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and are ready to switch sides, an oblique reference to Deputy CM Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena.
Fadnavis dismissed Thackeray's claim and asked what his party BJP will do with Shinde-led Sena's MLAs when they are already part of the ruling Mahayuti alliance.
In June 2022, the Shiv Sena split following a rebellion led by Shinde, resulting in the collapse of the then Uddhav Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi government.
Later, in January 2024, Assembly speaker Rahul Narwekar held that the Shinde-led faction was the "real" Shiv Sena, which is a constituent of the ruling Mahayuti in the state along with the BJP and Deputy CM Ajit Pawar's NCP.
"There is one party and two factions on the treasury side. Twenty-two MLAs from one faction have grown close to the CM. They have good funds and they have started dancing to the tune of the CM," Aaditya Thackeray claimed, without naming the Shiv Sena led by his arch political rival.
The 22 MLAs are "ready to switch (sides)," the former state minister claimed while talking to reporters in the Vidhan Bhawan premises in Nagpur, where the state legislature is having its winter session.
The Opposition MLA from Worli in Mumbai also said someone from these 22 legislators calls himself "vice-captain", a veiled reference to Industries Minister Uday Samant.
