Nagpur: Devendra Fadnavis’ visit to Ashish Deshmukh raises questions and expectations

Following the outcome of the Kasba by-election, Ashish Deshmukh openly criticized Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, suggesting that the impact of this outcome would extend to the south-west Nagpur constituency. In response, Fadnavis, accompanied by state BJP president Chandrashekhar Bawankule, paid a visit to Deshmukh's residence on Saturday and even shared a breakfast together. This development has sparked discussions in political circles regarding whether the BJP has a strategy to bridge the gap with Deshmukh.

On Saturday, Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and State BJP President Chandrashekhar Bawankule conducted government review meetings and held workers' meetings in Saoner and Katol constituencies. During the rally in Saoner, Fadnavis assured party workers that a local candidate, someone from among them, would be nominated to contest the elections instead of an outsider. Following the rally, Fadnavis and Bawankule visited Deshmukh's residence named 'Barkat' in Civil Lines.

In addition, they engaged in a breakfast meeting and had discussions, indicating that the visit was not a casual one. Deshmukh holds considerable political influence, and the BJP is actively searching for suitable candidates in Saoner and Katol. It is possible that the visit was motivated by strategic considerations regarding the assembly's dynamics. Intriguingly, Deshmukh expressed admiration for Fadnavis' approach to governance following the meeting. It is expected that Deshmukh will soon make his way back home.

In 2009, Ashish Deshmukh joined the BJP and ran for the Saoner Assembly elections. He put up a strong fight against Sunil Kedar from the Congress party. But after losing, Deshmukh didn't go back to Saoner and ignored calls from party workers who needed help in elections. In 2014, he switched to Katol and defeated Anil Deshmukh, a former minister. However, even as an MLA, he wasn't happy and started a campaign against the BJP.

He started making accusations against BJP leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Eventually, before completing his term as an MLA, he quit the BJP and joined the Congress party. In 2019, he directly contested against Fadnavis in the South-West constituency. This has caused dissatisfaction among BJP officials in Katol and Saoner. The local officials believe that Deshmukh, who abandons workers once his work is done and behaves in a disorderly manner, should not be imposed on them again.