MUMBAI: A day after an ad featuring the photographs of Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and Prime Minister Narendra Modi was published, an advertisement of the state’s ruling alliance appeared in Marathi newspapers on Wednesday, which also carried pictures of Shiv Sena founder Balasaheb Thackeray and Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. . In a one-page advertisement published in some leading newspapers in the state on Tuesday, citing a survey, Shinde was said to be more people’s choice than Fadnavis for the chief minister’s post. However, there was no picture of Fadnavis or Bal Thackeray in this advertisement.
The advertisement, titled ‘Modi in the nation, Shinde government in Maharashtra’, claimed that all is not well between the ruling BJP and the Shinde-led Shiv Sena. Newspapers published in Marathi dailies on Wednesday also quoted a survey claiming that 49.3 percent voters in Maharashtra prefer the BJP and the Shiv Sena. It has been said that 84 percent of the voters feel that the leadership of Prime Minister Modi has given the vision of development to the country and 62 percent believe that the ‘double engine’ government is doing rapid development work in the state.
The new ad has photographs of Fadnavis and Bal Thackeray along with Shinde’s political mentor Anand Dighe. It also has photos of many Shiv Sena ministers in the state government.
Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut said that the new advertisement is the result of Fadnavis’ displeasure. “It is clear what is in his mind, but all is not well. The government will collapse like a pack of cards. A proxy war is going on between Shinde and the BJP,” he said.
At the same time, the National Working President of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and MP Supriya Sule expressed surprise that who conducted the survey and what was the sample size? “I am looking for well-wishers who gave advertisements worth crores of rupees in newspapers. I think today’s design came from Delhi and this possibility cannot be ruled out,” she said in Pune. Asked at whose behest the new advertisement would have been released on Wednesday, the NCP leader said, “An invisible hand from Delhi…”
NCP spokesperson Mahesh Taapsee termed the new advertisement as a revised version of the one released on Tuesday. He said, “The people of Maharashtra will be curious to know how cordial the relations between the BJP and the Shinde-led Shiv Sena are.”
Leader of Opposition in the Assembly Ajit Pawar said that if the BJP and the Shinde-led Shiv Sena are so confident of people’s support, they should hold elections immediately. Pawar said that most of the ministers whose photographs have been published in Wednesday’s advertisement are controversial.