Maharashtra: The previous Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVH) government in Maharashtra wanted to arrest the then Leader of Opposition and current Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and his colleague Girish Mahajan, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde said adding he was a witness to this planning.
Addressing the media on the eve of Maharashtra Assembly's Budget session, Shinde said, "I was a witness to the ongoing planning of the MVA government to arrest then leader of opposition Devendra Fadnavis and Girish Mahajan. That government had even planned to invoke the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act 1999 against Mahajan. I cannot repeat what I had said that time to stop them."
"Instead of changing the decision, I later toppled the whole government and made them (MVA) sit at home. The strategy was to put the Bharatiya Janata Party on the backfoot (through the arrests)," Shinde claimed.
"Dethroning is enough for them. I am well aware of who was indulging in such practices. If required, we will initiate an inquiry into the matter,” he said while responding to why his government was not taking any action against the MVA.
Recently, the election commission alloted Shiv Sena's name and its 'bow-and-arrow symbol' to Shinde's faction following which the Uddhav Thackeray-led faction of Sena approached the Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court has refused to stay election commission's order, however, the matter is still sub judice.
(With inputs from PTI)
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