Thackeray faction should hold a repentance protest: Shirsat

Lokmat News Network

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar:

The guardian minister, Sanjay Shirsat, in a press conference on Thursday, took a jibe at the Thackeray faction, saying that instead of holding a protest titled ‘Labadano Pani Dya’ (Give Water, You Cheats ), they should first hold a repentance protest at Kranti Chowk.

When asked for his reaction to the protest, he said, “It seems like a massive protest of theirs.” “You cheats, first return the money you pocketed in the name of the parallel water pipeline scheme. You have already recovered that money from the people. Because of your commission policy, the citizens are now facing a severe water crisis. Before holding such a protest, Uddhav Thackeray’s faction should hold a repentance movement at Kranti Chowk.”

"We will complete the new water supply scheme. The project is in its final stage," said Shirsat. He also criticised the Shiv Sena (Thackeray faction), saying, "It felt wrong that during the Nashik meet, the speech of the Shiv Sena chief was shown in someone else’s voice. It seemed like an attempt to save their own house."

Shirsat further remarked, "MP Sanjay Raut has taken the party into Silver Oak’s trash bin and the Congress’s bedroom."

Taking a jibe at Ambadas Danve, he said, "Only because of our uprising did Danve, despite lacking merit, manage to get the position of Leader of the Opposition. Khaire still hasn’t received full justice, and the so-called 'self-respect' (Swabhiman) doesn’t exist with anyone in Uddhav Thackeray’s group anymore."

Shirsat was a corporator; he must be familiar with those kinds of dealings: Danve.

Leader of the Opposition MLC Ambadas Danve hit back at the guardian minister, saying, "Shirsat himself has served as a municipal corporator and a house leader. So he must be well aware of all the dealings related to the water supply scheme and who did what."

Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Danve responded to a question by saying, "Shirsat should focus on managing his portfolio, Rs 15,000 crore has been embezzled, and he can't even safeguard the funds allocated to his ministry. He has no right to speak about the Shiv Sena chief."

Criticising the cancellation of the parallel water pipeline project due to the BJP, it was clarified that the protest is not about when the water supply scheme will be completed. Instead, our protest is about why citizens are forced to wait for water for 7–8 days, even when water is available.

This deceitful mismanagement needs to stop. The protest aims to compel the municipal corporation administration to do proper planning. Starting from April 18, we will launch the protest titled 'Give Water, You Cheats' by tying garlands (toran) of empty pots at the entry points of the city.

To ensure smooth water supply and distribution, a series of different types of protests will be held over the next month.

On Friday, protests will be held at four key locations in the city — Baba Petrol Pump, Mukundwadi Chowk Arch, Railway Station Flyover, and Harsul T-Point — where garlands of empty water pots will be tied as a symbolic demonstration, said Ambadas Danve.