MUMBAI: A fresh rift is on the cards in the one-year-old ruling
Maha Vikas Aghadi in the state over the Shiv Sena's demand for
renaming Aurangabad as Sambhaji Nagar. State Congress president and revenue minister
Balasaheb Thorat has opposed the Sena's demand.
For a long time, the Shiv Sena has been demanding
renaming of Aurangabad as Sambhaji Nagar. According to reports, on January 4 last year, the state administration submitted a proposal to the
MVA government to rename
Aurangabad as Sambhaji Nagar.
Thorat, who was recently in Aurangabad for the campaign for the gram panchayat elections, strongly opposed the proposal, saying the MVA government will adhere to the common minimum programme, and that it will be improper to step beyond the CMP. "There is no proposal before the MVA to rename Aurangabad as Sambhaji Nagar. Congress will strongly oppose any such move. We will not move beyond the CMP," Thorat said.
Thorat pointed out that changing the name of the city would not result in development of the city. "The MVA has been formed by political parties which are opposed to the theories and ideology of parties like the BJP. We are a government of three parties, and we take decisions by consensus. There may be differences on certain key issues, but we will adhere to the common minimum programme. We are determined to ensure the progress and welfare of all sections of society," Thorat said.
Thorat said that ever since theMVA had taken over the reins of the state more than a year ago, the BJP appears to be on the back foot, particularly after the debacle in elections to the legislative council from the teachers' and graduates' constituencies. "We won all the five seats. BJP lost all the seats it contested, we won even from Nagpur, the stronghold of the BJP. In fact, we wrested the Nagpur seat after five decades," Thorat said.
On the reduction in ready reckoner rates and premium on FSI too, there are differences within the MVA. While RR rates were reduced unilaterally "without consulting" the Congress by the Sena and NCP, when the Sena brought about policy changes in the premium, Congress not only objected to the proposal but succeeded in stalling it. "We expect that basic changes will be made in the ready reckoner rates as well as premium policy and the CM will take a final decision. The Congress view is that the changes were made keeping in mind a section of leading builders in Mumbai," a senior Congress minister said.