Antulay neglected Konkan, charges Pawar

This was the third convention of the NCP, while the first was held at Aurangabad, the second was organised at Mahabaleshwar in Satara district. At both the meets, NCP cabinet members criticised the Congress-led Democratic Front government of which it is a constituent. At Aurangabad convention, Rural Development Minister R R Patil came down heavily on the Government following suicides committed by a section of farmers while at the Mahabaleshwar meet, Pawar expressed displeasure over the poor financial situation of the State.

At the Konkan region convention, Pawar targetted the Congress, saying, come elections and the party is engrossed in “bag” culture. “Senior leaders of the Congress from the Konkan region, never attached any importance to the party workers at the grassroot level. They made their use only during the elections. They ask the party workers to move with bags,” Pawar observed.

On the charge of Antulay that Minister of State for Urban Development Sunil Tatkare is a traitor since he left the Congress to join the NCP, Pawar said it was unfortunate that the former CM miserably failed to understand who are his real enemies. “The Konkan electorate now know their real enemies and elected the NCP members. When Antulay went to Aurangabad, the electorate taught him a lesson there too,” he added.

Pawar also came down heavily on Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee for endorsing the Gujarat government’s decision to permit government employees to participate in the activities of the Rashtriya Swayam Sewak Sangh (RSS). “Such decisions will strength communal forces. It was unfortunate that Vajpayee has supported the decision,” he said.

On the backwardness of the Konkan region, Pawar said very soon he will organise a meeting of the senior Cabinet members at the tehsil level to take on the spot decisions on the pending proposals.

Endorsing the views expressed by Pawar, Deputy Chief Minister Chhagan Bhujbal flayed Antulay for his alliance with the Shiv Sena. “At a juncture when we are fighting the Shiv Sena, Antulay is hobnobbing with Sena leaders. Even when he was a minister at the Centre, he had informed Bal Thackeray that he was his ambassador in the Capital,” he said.

Along with Antulay, Bhujbal also targetted former chief minister Narayan Rane and Sena chief Bal Thackeray. “Both Thackeray and Rane are making baseless allegations against me. They feel that I will reopen the Shreedhar Naik murder case or implement the recommendations of the Srikrishna Commission,” he said.

Bhujbal revealed that the erstwhile Sena-BJP government had rejected the Srikrishna Commission report. Now the Congress-led Democratic Front government has changed its stand and it was awaiting the directions of the apex court, he added.

On the criticism of his government over transfer of police officials, the Deputy Chief Minister said he was surprised that only when police officials are shifted, there is a hue and cry, while no one raises his voice when Indian Administrative Service officials are shunted out. “I feel that since police officials are well aware of the style of functioning of the members of the erstwhile Sena-BJP cabinet members, there was strong objection of shifting of police officials. Once such officials are shifted, the new officials will expose the earlier government and its supporter,” he pointed out.

Bhujbal declared the State Government will soon set up an autonomous Konkan Tourism Development Corporation for allround development of the backward region. Sunil Tarkare, who represents Roha in the Assembly, also launched a frontal attack on Antulay, his earlier political mentor.