The Shiv Sena has a message for Maharashtra’s new chief minister as he takes charge on Saturday.
The Bharatiya Janata Party’s former ally cautioned Devendra Fadnavis against taking people for granted and asked him to fulfill the
expectations of the common man.
"The new government is like a newly-wed woman who initially pleases her mother-in-law. In this case, the mother- in-law is the people of Maharashtra. You cannot take people for granted. They have the power to pull your ears when you err," an editorial in Sena mouthpiece Saamana said.
This is the first lesson the new government will have to learn, the Sena advised amid signs of a rapprochement between the saffron parties, who parted ways on September 25, weeks ahead of the assembly polls, which saw the BJP emerging as the single largest party in the state.
The BJP has 123 seats and the Shiv Sena 63.
It is true that there is no magic wand to fulfill promises made (during polls) but the people of Maharashtra are looking at the new government, the first led by the BJP in the state, with a lot of hope, the publication said.
"Mantralaya (the state secretariat) was gutted during the Congress-Nationalist Congress Party rule but the aspirations of people had turned into ashes much before that. The new chief minister should ensure that his work is like the proverbial Phoenix which rose from the ashes," the Sena organ maintained.
Describing Saturday’s swearing-in ceremony of the Fadnavis-led ministry as grand (it was also attended by corporate bigwigs), the Sena said the poor, and not the rich or money bags, should get the attention of the administration as was the case during Shivaji's era.
"Fadnavis has said he will emulate Shivaji Maharaj's example while ruling the state. He should remember that the real strength of Shivaji's Hindavi Swarajya was not the seth and sahukars (the rich) but the common poor folk."
Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray attended the inauguration ceremony at Wankhede Stadium after a call from BJP President Amit Shah and other leaders. The party had earlier announced it would keep off the mega event, attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, citing "constant humiliation" by the BJP ahead of government formation.
Sena MP Vinayak Raut on Friday said Shah has assured Uddhav of a positive decision on participation of his party in the BJP government.
Image: Maharashtra's new Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis takes charge today. Photograph: Sahil Salvi
