Prime Minister Narendra Modi's canceled visit has sparked political controversy in Pune, with opposition parties now demanding the prompt inauguration of the metro route to benefit Punekar commuters. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), along with Congress and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS), have taken an aggressive stance, putting the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on the defensive.
Modi’s highly publicized visit was called off due to heavy rains, fueling political speculation. Even before the visit, Congress had criticized the multiple inaugurations of the same project. State Vice President Mohan Joshi listed the numerous times the Prime Minister had come to Pune for the metro's inauguration. With the tour, seen as part of BJP's election campaign, now canceled, Joshi commented that the city was spared traffic congestion due to road closures. He also urged the Maha metro administration to quickly open the newly announced metro route, easing travel for Punekar commuters.
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Similarly, AAP questioned how long the city’s assets worth thousands of crores would remain unused. City President Sudarshan Jagdale demanded that Mahametro launch the District Court to Swargate route via Mandai, given the strong public response to the metro. Jagdale warned that if the administration did not take action, AAP would open the route alongside common passengers. Hemant Sambhus, Janadhikar Sena's state president from MNS, criticized the government for spending crores on preparations for a single person's visit. He pointed out that the metro project was intended to ease Pune’s traffic woes and insisted it should be opened to the public without further delay.
On the defensive, BJP city wing President Dheeraj Ghate released a statement attributing the cancellation to natural calamities, assuring Punekars that Modi's visit would be rescheduled soon and the route inaugurated. Amid the political chaos, metro commuters voiced their desire for the Zilla Court to Mandai route to be opened quickly. The original route, from Pimpri-Chinchwad to Swargate, is still pending approval at the District Court stage. Regular metro users stressed that since the work is almost complete, the route should be inaugurated without further delay.