Amit Shah to visit NCP leader’s home amid tensions between Maharashtra allies

Union home minister Amit Shah will visit National Congress Party (NCP) leader Sunil Tatkare’s residence for lunch during his visit to Raigad on Saturday amid tensions between the constituents of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led government in Maharashtra over the appointment of guardian ministers.

Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis was forced to put on hold the appointment of Tatkare’s daughter, Aditi Tatkare, as the Raigad district guardian minister in January after Shiv Sena objected to it. Shiv Sena’s Bharat Gogawale has accused Tatkare of sabotaging his nomination for the post.

Shiv Sena spokesman and minister Sanjay Shirsat said Sunil Tatkare, a Lok Sabha member, was trying to become close to Shah by inviting him home. He insisted Shah’s visit has nothing to do with the guardian minister issue. “Amit bhai is a senior leader and the issue of guardian minister is a petty issue for a leader of his stature,” he said.

Maharashtra BJP chief Chandrashekhar Bawankule clarified that Sunil Tatkare invited the leaders of the ruling coalition. “It is our tradition and culture. If Amit bhai is going to Tatkare’s residence, it is a good thing.”

He said there is no reason for deputy chief minister and Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde, Gogawale, or him to be upset over it. “There is no reason to see politics in it.”

An NCP leader said they requested Shah, who will arrive in Pune for a two-day visit to Maharashtra on Friday and visit the Maratha king Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj’s memorial and Raigad Fort, to also visit the residences of their leaders. “Whenever Shah comes to Maharashtra, he visits only the residences of BJP leaders. We requested him to also come to our homes to create an environment of mutual respect. He accepted the request and is starting the same with Tatkare’s residence,” he said.

In January, Shinde forced Fadnavis to pause the appointments of Aditi Tatkare and the BJP’s Girish Mahajan as Raigad and Nashik’s guardian ministers within 24 hours. Shiv Sena ministers Gogawale and Dada Bhuse staked a claim to the posts.

Shiv Sena said Shinde was unhappy about the guardian ministers’ appointments, underlining that he used to take all the coalition constituents along when he was the chief minister. Shinde is also believed to have been upset over Fadnavis’s move to overrule the decisions taken during the previous Shiv Sena-led government.

The oath-taking ceremony of the new government late last year was delayed as Shinde kept pushing for the key portfolios, including home. There was also uncertainty about whether he would join the government as deputy chief minister.