Fadnavis will miss his mentor Eknath Khadse

Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis will find it difficult to manage legislature proceedings as well as containing the bureaucrats in absence of the most senior BJP leader.

After the 2009 Maharashtra Assembly elections, when BJP leader Eknath Khadse became the leader of opposition, his official residence was occupied by his “junior” Devendra Fadnavis.

Khadse had given a power of attorney to a Pune-based builder Ravindra Barhate to seek information pertaining to various land deals in the state under the Right to Information (RTI) Act.

Barhate used to submit the information he had to Khadse and the latter would, in turn, hand over those documents to Fadnavis, who would study them. In one such case, Fadnavis found there was a scam in the illegal transfer of 120 acres of land in Pune.

The urban development department, led by the chief minister Ashok Chavan, had handed over the land to a construction firm owned by his close friend. The fraud, popularly known as “Ramoshi land scam”, made Fadnavis an overnight hero.

Fadnavis unearthed one land scam after another in the then Congress-NCP government. He successfully created an image for himself as a fearless leader who could take on the powerful.

Khadse used to rely on Fadnavis in the legislature proceedings too. The journalists sitting in the press gallery could clearly see Khadse signalling to Fadnavis, who used to sit in the row behind him, to follow any critical comment he made about the government.

For five years, the Khadse-Fadnavis duo cornered the government on issues like the irrigation scam, dubious land transfers, the deteriorating law and order situation and the pathetic economic conditions in the state.

Ironically, Khadse was most upset when Fadnavis was chosen by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to lead the first ever BJP government in Maharashtra. He openly expressed his feelings of neglect. That one statement created a rift between Fadnavis and his “mentor” Khadse.

He is outspoken, aggressive and loud, but Khadse always shielded the government efficiently in the legislature whenever opponents levelled an attack. Fadnavis will find it somewhat difficult to defend the government now as no other BJP minister is as experienced as Khadse in handling legislature proceedings.

The proceedings in the seniors’ house, Vidhan Parishad, will be more difficult for Fadnavis to address. Being the leader of the Vidhan Parishad, Khadse used to do all the troubleshooting in the House.

As the BJP is not in a majority in the elders’ house, it has always depended on the NCP's “cooperation” for clearing several bills.

Now that the fiery leader of Opposition Dhananjay Munde has returned to the House and the Congress too has nominated the firebrand Narayan Rane, also a former Maharashtra CM, the BJP is definitely on a sticky wicket.

It is likely that Fadnavis will don his old avatar as a fiery Opposition leader while facing the House. He has already faced flak for not hiding his emotions in spite of being the state’s top executive.

“Many times, I warn myself, ‘you are the CM not opposition leader so be cool’, but I have been unable to keep my promise,” Fadnavis had told India Today some days ago.

Administration is another area where Fadnavis will miss Khadse, who took care of 12 departments at one time. Fadnavis has admitted that lower rank bureaucrats do not listen to him. It was only Khadse whom the bureaucrats did not dare overlook.

At times, he would even use aggressive and foul language, but he never allowed bureaucrats to get an upper hand. This is something Fadnavis has not been able to achieve yet. “Government means ministers, not the bureaucrats,” Khadse believes.

Khadse’s ouster from the cabinet is also likely to lead to Fadnavis’ projection as an “anti-OBC” leader. Fadnavis, a Brahmin, was keen on “punishing” another heavyweight OBC leader Chhagan Bhujbal for his alleged involvement in the Rs 600 crore Maharashtra Sadan scam.

The stories of conflict between Fadnavis and Khadse were planted in the press systematically. His opponents have already succeeded in establishing that Fadnavis wants to be an autocrat. Rane was quite vocal in saying that Khadse has been removed because he comes from OBC.

“The BJP should have conducted proper probe into the allegations before taking a hasty decision. It is clear that he is a victim of the BJP’s internal politics,” Rane says.

A BJP leader asks why Fadnavis did not ask women and child development minister Pankaja Munde to resign when she was at the centre of a controversy for clearing purchases worth Rs 206 crore in a day by flouting rules.

“I am not backing any wrong deed but one thing is clear. We have easily thrown out our wicket. This is the wicket of an opening batsman who could have scored at least 50,” the leader says.

As he has lost the first wicket, Fadnavis will need to change the battle line-up while aiming for a high score. His biggest worry is he no longer has an all-rounder like Khadse by his side.