Former CM given key role in poll-bound state amid east-west cold war politics between saffron allies
Sources said Fadnavis will work with the party's general secretary in charge of Bihar affairs, Prof. Bhupendra Yadav. Pic/Sayyed Sameer Abedi
Former Maharashtra chief minister and opposition leader, Devendra Fadnavis will team up with senior leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to create a strategy for the Bihar Assembly polls, which will be held later this year. Fadnavis has campaigned for the party in the Assembly and Lok Sabha elections in other states before becoming the CM and after assuming the top office in 2014.
This time around, he will be seen in a national role of prominence, most probably as the election in-charge, in the state where the BJP has been ruling with CM Nitish Kumar's Janata Dal. Beginning his national performance, he is reported to have participated in a meeting of Bihar-related poll issues on Thursday. The announcement of Fadnavis's appointment is expected to be made in the coming days.
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When asked by mid-day if the Bihar strategic group appointment was coming through, Fadnavis agreed. Sources said he will work in coordination with the party's general secretary in-charge of Bihar affairs, Prof. Bhupendra Yadav, who had supervised the Maharashtra Assembly polls for the BJP last year.
Congress spokesperson Sachin Sawant said the people of Maharashtra will feel relieved in these times of the pandemic, because of Fadnavis's appointment for the Bihar polls. "Thank you BJP, for deciding in favour of Maharashtra," he said, asking the ex-CM to be happy wherever he is sent.
No coincidence: Munde
With Fadnavis being tipped as one of the strategy makers for Bihar, many eyebrows were raised, especially in Maharashtra's ruling camp, which is fighting the BJP over the demand for handing over the investigation of actor Sushant Singh Rajput's death to the CBI. The MVA government has alleged that the death was being used for political gains. The controversy surrounding the death has become a major talking point in Bihar, and is expected to be a poll plank, among other issues, for the BJP and its coalition partner.
Talking to media persons on Friday, a Nationalist Congress Party leader and minister, Dhananjay Munde, quipped, "Can this (appointment) be a mere coincidence?"
Polls on schedule
The tenure of the current Bihar Assembly will end on November 29. The Election Commission of India said this week that the polls will be held on time, though some parties asked it to postpone the process in view of the novel Coronavirus pandemic. In case the election process is not completed by November 28, the President's rule will come into force.
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