Mumbai: Maharashtra deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Friday signed off a speech at a Pune event attended by Union minister Amit Shah with the slogan “Jai Gujarat”, and set off a controversy with opposition parties accusing him of betraying Marathi pride.
The Congress and Nationalist Congress Party (Sharad Pawar) accused the Shiv Sena chief of prioritising political appeasement over Maharashtra’s interests.
Defending himself, Shinde said he first said “Jai Hind, Jai Maharashtra” at the event of “Gujarati brothers”, and by adding “Jai Gujarat” he only wanted to pay a tribute to the community that has long contributed to Maharashtra’s economic growth.
State Congress president Harshwardhan Sapkal called for Shinde’s resignation. “Maharashtra is the land of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj who stood for self-respect and sovereignty. It is a matter of shame that a leader occupying deputy Chief Minister’s chair chants ‘Jai Gujarat’….This is nothing but political slavery,” Sapkal said. “His slogan is not just sycophancy, it is an insult to every proud Maharashtrian. Shinde’s actions show how deeply entrenched Gujarat’s influence has become in Maharashtra politics under the current regime,” he claimed. Several major projects including a Vedanta-Foxconn semiconductor plant were diverted to Gujarat, the Congress leader alleged, adding that Maharashtra lost employment opportunities for its youth. “Industries, corporate offices and investment of thousands of crores are being shifted to Gujarat. This is happening under Shinde and (Chief Minister) Fadnavis’s watch,” he said.
NCP (SP) spokesperson Clyde Crasto also linked Shinde’s slogan to the `migration’ of projects.
“It was proven today that when Eknath Shinde was made the chief minister of Maharashtra, why projects meant for the state kept going to Gujarat. The truth is, he was working for the ‘Jai’ (triumph) of Gujarat,” Crasto said.
“Shinde came to power with the support of the ‘Marathi manoos’, but today, he has betrayed them,” he added. Shinde himself termed the controversy a non-issue which was being inflated to derive political mileage. “While speaking at an event of Gujarati brothers in Pune, after saying ‘Jai Hind, Jai Maharashtra,’ I also said ‘Jai Gujarat’. This is being blown out of proportion. ‘Jai Gujarat’ was not a political slogan, but a tribute to the entrepreneurial and spirited Gujarati community in Pune,” Shinde stressed.
He also took a swipe at the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT), saying, “They put up hoardings seeking votes of Gujarati people during the assembly elections and now are trying to tarnish my image. They should introspect before levelling unfounded accusations.”
The Gujarati community has contributed to Maharashtra’s economic growth and deserves respect, not contempt, he further said.
“Gujarat is not Pakistan, and the opposition should understand this first. Those who are angry over me saying ‘Jai Gujarat’ must answer where their outrage was when Pakistan’s flags were waved in their processions,” he asked.
Targeting the Thackeray-led Sena (UBT), Shinde said, “Who were the ones putting up hoardings saying ‘Kem Chho Worli’? Who published pamphlets like ‘Jalebi Fafda, Uddhav Thackeray Apda’ to woo Gujarati voters?”
Hindutva is his party’s soul and Marathi is its breath, Shinde said, adding that their roots were connected to the Marathi people.
Calling for maturity in political discourse, Shinde also accused the opposition of trying to polarise voters by portraying Gujaratis as “second-class citizens.”
It will damage Maharashtra’s image nationally, he said, adding that Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray never saw Gujaratis as enemies.
Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis also defended his colleague, saying “such parochial thinking does not befit Marathi manoos”.
“Just because Shinde said ‘Jai Gujarat’, it doesn’t mean that he loves Gujarat more than Maharashtra,” Fadnavis told reporters.
Recalling a past incident, he said, “When a statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj was unveiled at Chikodi in Karnataka, Sharad Pawar had said “Jai Maharashtra, Jai Karnataka”. Does this mean that Pawar loves Karnataka more?”
