The alleged suicide of 22-year-old social media influencer Pooja Chavan rocked Maharashtra as allegations of the role played by State Forest Minister and senior Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Rathod surfaced. After sustained pressure from the BJP’s Chitra Wagh and the refusal of Sena’s allies – INC and NCP to back Rathod on the issue saw the Shiv Sena minister tendering his resignation post his meeting with Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray. However, Thackeray is allegedly shielding Rathod behind the scenes as he’s yet to forward Rathod’s resignation to the Governor Koshyari. Due to this, Rathod technically still holds the post of Forest Minister reports The Times of India.
Amidst sustained pressure by the Opposition BJP and the refusal of NCP and INC to back Sanjay Rathod, the latter tendered his resignation just a day before the start of the state assembly’s budget session. While it was expected that Thackeray would immediately forward the resignation to the Governor keeping in mind the gravity of the allegations, however, at the time of writing this piece, the resignation has still not been forwarded to Raj Bhavan.
TOI quoted an anonymous Sena leader as claiming that Uddhav Thackeray could even keep the resignation with him for a month and once the ongoing inquiry against Rathod is completed and the report is submitted, the Shiv Sena supremo may hand over the same portfolio to Rathod or adjust him with some other portfolio.
“In an internal adjustment, even if the Chief Minister takes over the charge of the portfolio the minister was holding, he(Rathod) can again take charge of his office without a fresh oath by the governor if the governor doesn’t sanction his resignation,” said Dr. Anant Kalse, former principal secretary of the state legislature.
Thackeray’s hesitancy to forward Rathod’s resignation to the Governor could be down to two reasons: One, Sanjay Rathod is a local strongman from Vidarbha who recently held a show of strength at Poharadevi temple in Washim. Thackeray is perhaps averse of rubbing Rathod the wrong way especially considering the fact that earlier the Forest Minister stubbornly refused to resign. Secondly, just like vultures, Sena’s allies NCP and INC have started encircling the post of Forest Minister as they demand their respective pound of flesh with the Sena perhaps finding it hard to keep the NCP and INC at bay.
As is the case since November 2019, the people of Maharashtra will emerge as the biggest losers in this tug-of-war amidst the Maha Vikas Aghadi allies.
