The Shiv Sena (UBT) claimed on Wednesday that only alleged economic offenders Mehul Choksi, Nirav Modi, and Vijay Mallya were remaining to be inducted into the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), days after Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Ajit Pawar joined the Maharashtra cabinet.
An editorial in the Sena (UBT) mouthpiece 'Saamana' dubbed the political situation in Maharashtra a movie, called One (doubt) full and two half, a reference to Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and two Deputy CMs Devendra Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar.
On Sunday, Ajit Pawar led a vertical split in the NCP to become deputy chief minister in the one-year-old Shiv Sena-BJP government, shocking his uncle Sharad Pawar, who founded the outfit 24 years ago after quitting the Congress.
The editorial claimed the superpower in Delhi was behind the developments in the NCP. It said the Supreme Court has in a judgement made it clear that a party's legislative group cannot stake claim over the organisation and its symbol.
There is no basis for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to talk about corruption, morality and dacoity, the Marathi publication said. BJP is being ridiculed for what it has done in Maharashtra. It is only left for the party to induct Mehul Choksi, Nirav Modi and Vijay Mallya. One will be made national treasurer of the party, second will be appointed in the NITI Aayog and third the governor of the Reserve Bank of India, it quipped.
Fugitives Mehul Choksi, Nirav Modi and Vijay Mallya are alleged to have defrauded public sector banks by siphoning off funds through their companies, resulting in losses worth thousands of crores to the lenders.