The Mahayuti rally in Maharashtra's Amravati for BJP candidate Navneet Rana scheduled for Wednesday has been grabbing attention for all the wrong reasons lately. The rally, set to feature Home Minister Amit Shah and other key leaders from the state alliance, faced strong opposition from MLA Bacchu Kadu on Tuesday. Kadu alleged that although his party had been granted permission to hold a rally at the Science Core ground in Amravati on Wednesday, they were denied access by the police to prepare for it. He further claimed that Navneet Rana's rally, lacking permission, was allowed while his party was barred, supposedly due to security concerns for Home Minister Amit Shah. Notably, Kadu, despite being part of the Mahayuti alliance, has been vocal in his criticism of other party constituents.
While the ground permission issue with Kadu seemed to ease on Wednesday morning, a new controversy arose among the Mahayuti constituents. Pictures and videos of the rally's preparation at the Science Core ground surfaced, revealing a banner on stage with images of PM Modi, HM Amit Shah, Amravati candidate Navneet Rana, CM Eknath Shinde, and DCM Fadnavis. Notably absent was a picture of DCM Ajit Pawar, the leader of the Mahayuti's key constituent NCP.
NCP MLC Amol Mitkari raised objections to this omission, criticising Navneet Rana for deliberately excluding Ajit Pawar's picture. "Navneet Rana ji, you seem to have forgotten the essence of Mahayuti. Do not sow seeds of discord within the Grand Alliance, or it may cost you dearly in the elections," Mitkar cautioned, sharing a video of the stage on his social media account.
It remains to be seen whether DCM Ajit Pawar will attend the rally in Amravati despite his absence from the banner. Such internal issues within the alliance constituents do not bode well for their public image.