BJP Launches Attack On Thackeray Govt Over Corona

The first glimpse of the BJP’s aggressive posture was seen last Friday when the party launched `Maharashtra Bachao Andolan’ (Save Maharashtra Agitation). Devendra Fadnavis along with several party workers held placards against the Thackeray government and organized a silent protest outside the BJP’s state office in Nariman Point, Mumbai.

BJP launches campaign against Maha Vikas Aghadi (PTI)

Mumbai: The BJP in Maharashtra has shed its reluctance to target the state government led by Uddhav Thackeray. So far, the BJP was avoiding to attack the incumbents due to fears that it would be seen as doing politics over the pandemic. Now the BJP has rethought its stand and has gone full-on to establish that Thackeray led government has failed in dealing with the crisis. The newly launched campaign has been launched with former CM Devendra Fadnavis at the forefront, who recently once again asserted his dominance over the party by getting his favorites elected to the Legislative Council by superseding other stalwarts in the party. The first glimpse of the BJP’s aggressive posture was seen last Friday when the party launched `Maharashtra Bachao Andolan’ (Save Maharashtra Agitation). Devendra Fadnavis along with several party workers held placards against the Thackeray government and organized a silent protest outside the BJP’s state office in Nariman Point, Mumbai. While speaking to journalists, Fadnavis lambasted the Thackeray government,"The Health System of the state has collapsed. Many states have issued relief packages for every section of the society but Maharashtra has not announced any such package. On the contrary, the financial help received from the central government has not been put to use. Foodgrains sent by the center is not reaching the needy. In state-run hospitals, patients are treated alongside dead bodies. Two patients are being kept on one bed. Even non-Corona patients are suffering. Many are dying due to the non-availability of ambulances. Many policemen have lost their life but there is no arrangement for their treatment. The number of Corona positive patients is near 40,000  but the state government is not serious towards the health care system." Apart from `Maharashtra Bachao Campaign’, senior BJP leader & former MP Kirit Somaiyya has been focusing on the areas where the government seems to be lacking in its duty. Almost, every other day he is sending videos to the media organizations showing the mess in hospitals. Recently, he alleged that there has been a scam while issuing contracts to the caterers for delivering food in quarantine centers. Somaiyya pointed out that food was being charged at different rates at different quarantine centers. This aggressive stance of the BJP also received backlash from the Shiv Sena & the Congress. Pointing towards a picture, the Shiv Sena leader & Maharashtra’s environment minister Aditya Thackeray tweeted, "Absolutely shameful, what lust for power politics can make leaders do. Making kids stand in the heat, with their masks lowered, not covering the face for political protest when we need to keep them safe and indoors. Corona ko bhool gaye, politics pyaara hai." In another tweet, he attacked the BJP by saying, "One political party state unit has set a new low and a new world record-the only party in the world to indulge in politics and in spreading fear, hate, and division when the world has forgotten all of it to help each other. This party has forgotten the pandemic." The incumbent Congress also bitterly reacted to the BJP’s campaign. Senior Congress leader & former minister Arif Nasim Khan said, "It is sad that in such a scenario the BJP is indulging in cheap politics. It must ask questions to the governments of Uttar Pradesh & Madhya Pradesh where the returning labourers are in distress’. The Congress leaders are also pointing out towards the BJP led Gujarat where the situation due to the pandemic is deteriorating at an alarming speed. Looking at the postures of incumbent parties and the BJP, in the coming days, the state is likely to witness overt politics over the Corona crisis. The BJP who was unable to get any strong issue to put the tri-party Maha Vikas Aghadi government in trouble since the past 6 months, now seems to capitalize over the alleged failure of the Thackeray government in handling the crisis. Personally, for Devendra Fadnavis it is an opportunity to assert his position in the party and in the state politics.