Mumbai:
Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan has hit back at ally the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP). In a veiled attack on Sharad Pawar's NCP, Mr Chavan said that several parties with only a few MPs get important cabinet berths; something that should be looked into.
The NCP, which is an ally in the Congress-led UPA at the Centre, has nine Lok Sabha MPs, out of which Mr Pawar, who is the union minister for agriculture, and Praful Patel, who is the union minister for heavy industries and public enterprises, have cabinet berths.
"There is coordination in Maharashtra but in Delhi it is more difficult as there are several smaller parties. What position in power they get, what portfolios they get, who gets the portfolios; all these things have to be looked into," Mr Chavan said on Saturday.
The Maharashtra Chief Minister's comments come after the Congress and the NCP struck peace and announced the formation of a coordination committee aimed at better functioning.
Earlier, Mr Pawar's party had accused Mr Chavan of inefficiency and under-performance.
Mr Chavan, who also holds the urban development portfolio in Maharashtra, had been criticised by several leaders for not clearing projects, and stalling development in many areas. Mr Chavan yesterday shot back at critics, saying he has cleared more files than his predecessors.
"I went through the data of other chief ministers. I have to say this, though I don't like saying it, that I have cleared more files than Vilasrao Deshmukh and Ashok Chavan. I can share that with you," Mr Chavan said.
Earlier this week, there were reports of a letter written by 40 of the Congress' 82 MLAs in Maharashtra that even though did not name Mr Chavan, but made the point nonetheless that they are unhappy with his leadership. The note said that that when they tour their constituencies, they face angry voters who are upset because major projects have not been sanctioned, blaming Mr Chavan's urban development ministry.
Mr Chavan had reportedly irked the NCP by asking for "a white paper" on irrigation. Till 2009, the Irrigation Ministry was led by Mr Pawar's nephew, Ajit Pawar. After that, it was given to the NCP's Sunil Tatkare.
The NCP, which is an ally in the Congress-led UPA at the Centre, has nine Lok Sabha MPs, out of which Mr Pawar, who is the union minister for agriculture, and Praful Patel, who is the union minister for heavy industries and public enterprises, have cabinet berths.
"There is coordination in Maharashtra but in Delhi it is more difficult as there are several smaller parties. What position in power they get, what portfolios they get, who gets the portfolios; all these things have to be looked into," Mr Chavan said on Saturday.
The Maharashtra Chief Minister's comments come after the Congress and the NCP struck peace and announced the formation of a coordination committee aimed at better functioning.
Earlier, Mr Pawar's party had accused Mr Chavan of inefficiency and under-performance.
Mr Chavan, who also holds the urban development portfolio in Maharashtra, had been criticised by several leaders for not clearing projects, and stalling development in many areas. Mr Chavan yesterday shot back at critics, saying he has cleared more files than his predecessors.
"I went through the data of other chief ministers. I have to say this, though I don't like saying it, that I have cleared more files than Vilasrao Deshmukh and Ashok Chavan. I can share that with you," Mr Chavan said.
Earlier this week, there were reports of a letter written by 40 of the Congress' 82 MLAs in Maharashtra that even though did not name Mr Chavan, but made the point nonetheless that they are unhappy with his leadership. The note said that that when they tour their constituencies, they face angry voters who are upset because major projects have not been sanctioned, blaming Mr Chavan's urban development ministry.
Mr Chavan had reportedly irked the NCP by asking for "a white paper" on irrigation. Till 2009, the Irrigation Ministry was led by Mr Pawar's nephew, Ajit Pawar. After that, it was given to the NCP's Sunil Tatkare.
Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world
