Those who became rulers with Maratha support did no good for the community: Eknath Shinde

New Delhi: Those who came to power with Maratha support did not do them justice when they got the chance, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde said on Saturday after NCP-SP leader Sharad Pawar raised concerns over “community disagreement over the quota issue”.

In an interview with reporters, he also slammed critics of the state government’s ‘Ladki Bahin’ and ‘Ladka Bhau’ schemes, calling those trying to obstruct the implementation of the schemes ‘stepbrothers’.

The Chief Minister rejected Pawar’s allegation that the Maharashtra government had held separate meetings with leaders of the Maratha and OBC communities and given them various assurances. He said, “Whatever we say, we do it openly.” “It was the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government that could not defend the Devendra Fadnavis government’s decision to grant reservations to the Maratha community in the Supreme Court,” he said.

The MVA consists of the Shiv Sena (UBT), NCP-SP and the Congress.

Shinde alleged that his government was granting reservations to the Maratha community without affecting the quota of OBC groups.

“We gave reservations when we came to power. We also created additional posts and gave jobs to those who were eligible for the benefits of reservations,” the chief minister said.

In an apparent reference to the MVA government led by then Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, he said, “Those who were in power earlier were scared to implement the policy.” Shinde also challenged Pawar to take a transparent stand on the reservation issue and not hold any party hostage for political gains. “Elections come and go. Don’t use any community for political gains,” he said.

Pawar had also raised doubts over the continuity of the Maharashtra government’s ‘Ladki Bahin’ and ‘Ladka Bhau’ schemes, saying they may be terminated after payment of one or two installments.

Shinde hit back saying, “The opposition cannot digest the reaction to the two schemes. They are suffering from indigestion and should take Hajmola. These are stepbrothers who are trying to create obstacles in the two schemes. We have made sufficient allocations, we do not make an announcement and later say it was a misprint.” Under the ‘Ladka Bhau’ scheme, job seekers who have passed class 12 will get a monthly allowance of Rs 6,000, diploma holders Rs 8,000 and those with a bachelor’s degree will get Rs 10,000.

Under the ‘Ladki Bahin’ scheme, eligible women receive Rs 1,500 per month. PTI SKU NSD NSD