Mumbai: Public Works Department Minister Ashok Chavan's statement on Congress interim president Sonia Gandhi's instruction to Shiv Sena follow the Constitution has created a storm in the political circle of the state. The former CM had earlier claimed that Gandhi had sought a written undertaking from the Shiv Sena that it would follow the Constitution. The statement came after Sena announced that it had not abdicated the ideology of Hindutva and announced Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray's visit to Ayodhya on March 7.
Addressing a programme at Nanded on Republic Day, Chavan said that Gandhi was initially unwilling to ally with Sena. He claimed that she gave a nod only after Sena gave a written undertaking to work under the ambit of the Constitution. "We were asked to get an undertaking from Sena that they will work under the ambit of the Constitution. We were also told to leave the government if such violation took place," he said. Chavan's statement was meant as a reminder to Sena to keep its promise to follow the Constitution, which is secular. This statement raised doubts about the survival of the government, as it was a senior leader that hinted the possibility of exiting from the government.
The claim was, however, rejected by senior minister Eknath Shinde, who said that no such written undertaking was given to the Congress. Chavan later clarified on Monday that he was talking about the written common minimum programme, which was agreed by all three parties- Sena, NCP and Congress. Shinde too admitted that that government will follow the CMP.
"The government works in the ambit of the Constitution. We have a CMP and our government will complete five years," Congress state president Balasaheb Thorat said.
Earlier, Chavan also called Maha Vikas Aghadi government as a multi-starer movie. "I have the experience of running a government with two parties. There are three heroes in our movie (government) and the movie is doing well," he said in a lighter vain.
When asked for his reaction of this statement, Deputy CM Ajit Pawar refused to comment on it. " Do not create an unnecessary controversy," he appealed to media persons.
