Mumbai: Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Wednesday said appointing the Leader of Opposition in the state legislative assembly was the prerogative of the Speaker and the government would not interfere in it.
Talking to reporters after the conclusion of the over three-week-long Budget session of the state legislature, he also said the Mahayuti government was working towards ensuring that the state’s growth rate speeds up.
In the November 2024 assembly polls, the Mahayuti alliance of the Bharatiya Janata Party, Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena and Ajit Pawar’s Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) registered a resounding victory by winning 230 of the 288 assembly seats, while the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) comprising Shiv Sena (UBT), Congress and NCP (SP) managed to bag only 46 seats.
No Leader of Opposition has been appointed so far in the assembly.
Fadnavis said, “The Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the state assembly will be decided by the speaker. He is not under pressure from the government.”
Earlier, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Bhaskar Jadhav said the legislature secretariat gave him in writing that there was no criteria for how many members the opposition party should have in the House to get the post of LoP.
Talking about the business carried out during the session, Fadnavis said the legislature passed 12 bills, including the Maharashtra Mathadi, Hamal and Other Manual Workers (Regulation of Employment and Welfare) (Amendment) Bill to prevent bogus mathadis (head-loaders and porters).
“We are working to ensure the state’s growth rate speeds up,” he said, adding that the row over demand to remove Mughal emperor Aurangzeb’s grave and comedian Kunal Kamra’s parody song targeting Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde were issues for the opposition.
Deputy CM Shinde said common man’s welfare was the focus of the Mahayuti government.
“The pace of development will not stop. Maharashtra is an industry-friendly state and was number one in start-ups, Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and Gross Domestic Product (GDP),” he said.
“The government is working in a speedy manner by following the ‘no reason, only spot decision’ ideology. Those who give reasons have been sent home by the people. We have finalised DPRs (detailed project reports) of 50 cities,” he said.
“The government does not underestimate the opposition. Instead of speaking on issues in the legislature, the opposition was protesting on the stairs of Vidhan Bhavan complex,” Shinde said.
