Opposition parties boycott customary tea party on eve of Maharashtra legislature winter session

On Wednesday, opposition parties chose to abstain from the traditional tea gathering on the eve of the commencement of the winter session of the Maharashtra legislature. Their decision was driven by the claim that the government's handling of agrarian distress, riots, and drug-related crimes has been ineffective.

Speaking to reporters here, the Leader of the Opposition in the Maharashtra assembly, Vijay Wadettiwar, cited the latest crime bureau data to target the government.

We received the invitation of the state government for the tea party but we feel it would be highly inappropriate to attend it. We have decided to boycott the event, the Congress leader said. Referring to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) data, Wadettiwar claimed 22,746 farmers have committed suicide in Maharashtra because of agrarian distress and indebtedness.

The government has failed to address the agrarian distress in Maharashtra. There is no check on the rampant drug supply in the state. The NCRB figures also indicate that 8,218 cases of rioting were reported in the state (in 2022). In such a scenario, will fresh investment come to our state? he questioned.

Earlier in the day, opposition parties held a meeting in Nagpur to discuss the agenda for the winter session, likely to be dominated by issues such as the Maratha reservation demand and crop loss among others, in the next ten days.

This meeting was attended by former chief minister Prithviraj Chavan and Wadettiwar (both Congress), opposition leader in the Legislative Council Ambadas Danve (Shiv Sena-UBT), and NCP (Sharad Pawar faction) leaders Jayant Patil and Anil Deshmukh.