'BJP's plan to finish opposition will make India a dictatorship'

Even though he is busy gearing up for a triangular fight in the Karad South assembly constituency the larger battle between his dying Congress party and the ascendant BJP is never far from former chief minister Prithviraj Chavans mind While he blames BJP for its vicious efforts to obliterate Congress from Indias political landscape he does not spare those who defected to BJP eitherChavan says the defectors have not joined the BJP and Sena for the betterment of the public as they claim but merely to escape the punitive action the government threatens them with for alleged financial irregularities in institutes these leaders have been controlling for decadesThe technocratturnedpolitician also alleges that the BJP wants to turn India into a oneparty oneleader dictatorship Campaigning in the sugarcane belt and hilly areas with contrasting prosperity and poverty Chavan finds time for midday to discuss his thoughts on the present and the future of Indian politicsExcerptsWhy are you not contesting the Lok Sabha bypoll from Satara against Udayanraje BhosaleHe joined the BJP on the condition that bypolls will be held with the assembly polls The election was declared within 15 days of his resigning which is illegalMr Sharad Pawar asked me to contest the bypoll and said the NCP will ensure a win I told him I was prepared for the assembly polls but not very comfortable in running for MP I asked him to meet my high command who said I could contest provided there was no risk My supporters in Karad told me I must not leave them Also the options that were offered for Karad South in case I vacated the seat were not palatable All this is in the past now The NCP had second thoughts over giving us Satara They chose Shriniwas PatilFormer chief minister and Congress candidate Prithviraj Chavan campaigns in KaradWill Udayanraje Bhosale be defeatedIm confident of Patils victory because of the stronghold NCPCongress has The BJP wants to wrest the seat anyhow but hasnt factored in the dissent voters have for defectors Mr Pawar who feels slighted hurt and humiliated because he fielded the same man Udayanraje in May 2019 Lok Sabha against local MLAs wishes Mr Pawar thought the man was a Maratha icon and could be paraded in the rest of Maharashtra for mobilising support The BJP should be ready for a great shockWhy have so many of your colleagues left the Congress and NCPIts BJPs design to finish off the Congress and likeminded parties They targeted the leaders especially NCPs who diverted money from their institutes for achieving their individual ambitions This is more pronounced in Western Maharashtra where cooperatives and educational institutions exist in large number There was a time when political leaders promoted cooperative office bearers in exchange of support in the elections Later leaders realised they could do both mdash run the cooperatives and politics too When they illegally diverted money they left a paper trail The previous CongressNCP governments took a lenient view of irregularities but the BJP government studied irregularities and used it to pass on a message either join us or face the consequences Action against Mr Pawar and Mr Chidambaram gave out a bigger and clear message that however big and influential you are the BJP is not going to spare anyone who does not toe the ruling partys lineThe desertions will not affect us because only the leaders have left The core group is still intact and fighting it out with the help of committed voters People vote differently in state polls See what happened in MP Rajastan Chhattisgarh Orissa and Gujarat Voters will not fall for the BJPs divisive agenda that doesnt talk real issuesWhat are the real issuesSustainable farming management of rapid urbanisation and creation of jobs The country is in deep economic crisis Unemployment is the highest in 45 years Bank frauds increased sevenfold in the past five years Economists appointed by Mr Modi have left disappointed Mr Modi runs external affairs by flying out to different countriesMr Amit Shah runs internal affairs and controls agencies that work under Home and Finance ministries I dont understand who runs the countrys economy The minister incharge Nirmla Sitaraman is raw at best She blames millennials for less consumption but she doesnt understand that the young workforce is not guaranteed permanency in jobs hence they dont buy things that create a financial liability Millennials are spending more on experiences like food entertainment and travel The weekly budget mdash rollbacks perks tax sops etc mdash wont help This country needs certainty in economic policy Traders and corporates are upset but dont raise their voice because they are scared They say they will vote for us because the Congress policy at times flawed was best for a diverse country like us RSS chief Mr Mohan Bhagwat says there is nothing to worry because our growth rate isnt yet zero This is their economic visionWhat do you foreseeBJPs divisive agenda and its attempt to finish the Opposition by using all means available will lead to a dictatorship We have examples in Western countries Putin an intelligence chief is one such example I foresee Indias intelligence chief a highly ambitious man or some leader from the BJP taking up the dictators role sooner or laterHow has Maharashtra fared after you left officeMaharashtra was once the countrys financial capital but that honour has gone to the National Capital Region The BJP is spending on a thoughtless bullet train project when the state needs money for other sustainable projects The CMs priorities are wrong and he doesnt have the depth of leadership to run all departments Ministers who faced corruption charges were protected by the CM Probe reports were hidden from the public Does denial of ticket eradicate corruptionDidnt you pave the way for Fadnaviss styleMy friends read NCP misconstrued my action in the MSC Bank and water resources department MSC Bank was probed by NABARD and the RBI asked for superseding the board because the apex cooperative bank the backbone of rural economy didnt have a business license RBI denied license because the bank was in heavy losses The subsequent action brought the bank into huge profit and it is become rock solid yet again My asking for a white paper in delayed irrigation projects and escalated cost wasnt political vendetta against NCP I have suffered a lot because of this but I still stand by my decisions The NCP pulled out of my government in 2014 and parted ways after which we lost power But now we are all together with a sole purpose of defeating BJPTell us about the challenges in KaradKarad South has two segments ndash a rich sugar belt where water is in abundance and a hilly area where rainfall is higher but the water cannot be stored for farming It was here in the hilly tracks that the Mathadi Kamgaar workers who physically transport things movement was started A majority of Mathadis work in Mumbai and send home money every month I have worked hard for this region and I tell the people about it201014Period during which Prithviraj Chavan was CM of MaharashtraCatch up on all the latest Crime National International and Hatke news here Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updates