Mahayuti allies free to go solo in elections to local bodies: Ajit Pawar
Pune (PTI): Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar has said the Mahayuti constituents, including the NCP led by him, are free to contest local bodies elections independently.
Addressing Nationalist Congress Party workers in Pimpri Chinchwad city on Sunday, he argued that independent contests would help strengthen the cadres.
"Even though we are allies in Lok Sabha and state assembly, Mahayuti members are free to contest local bodies polls independently," he said.
The schedule for elections to local bodies, which include municipal councils, nagar panchayats and zilla parishads, is not yet announced.
The ruling Mahayuti alliance includes Shiv Sena led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, BJP, and the NCP led by Ajit Pawar.
Notably, Ajit Pawar's assertion on going solo in the local bodies elections came days after a Marathi weekly linked to the RSS blamed Ajit Pawar-led NCP's alliance with BJP for adverse public sentiments against the saffron party, leading to the BJP's debacle in the Lok Sabha polls in Maharashtra.
The report said BJP members and other individuals expressed disapproval of the party's decision to join forces with the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), which became an ally in the Shiv Sena-BJP government in the state in July 2023.
Meanwhile, Ajit Pawar denied stopping his estranged uncle and Rajya Sabha member Sharad Pawar from speaking at a Pune District Planning and Development Committee (DPDC) meeting held on Saturday.
Baramati MP Supriya Sule had claimed that Ajit Pawar had objected to her father asking questions about the disbursal of development funds at the meeting.
She claimed Ajit Pawar had cited a GR (Government Resolution) and said MPs and MLAs cannot ask questions about fund disbursal or vote during these meetings as they are only invitees.
Sharad Pawar had attended the meeting in his capacity as a Rajya Sabha member.
Clarifying his stand, Ajit Pawar said, "Supriya Sule yesterday claimed that I had insulted Pawar saheb. How can I do this to a person for whom I have high respect".
He alleged that Sule's statement was aimed at creating misunderstanding and gaining sympathy.
Ajit Pawar said he and another Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis met Union Home Minister Amit Shah in Pune on Saturday night and discussed development-related issues.
Addressing a BJP convention in Pune on Sunday, Shah called for a massive mandate to the saffron party-led Mahayuti alliance in the upcoming Maharashtra assembly polls.
Ajit Pawar also asserted that Pimpri Chinchwad is synonymous with his name.
"Pimpri Chinchwad means Ajit Pawar and Ajit Pawar means Pimpri Chinchwad. No one can deny this fact," he said in an apparent swipe at Sharad Pawar who had claimed credit for the development of the township.
Addressing a rally in Pimpri Chinchwad on Saturday, the Pawar senior said, “Our government had changed the face of Pimpri Chinchwad. This used to be a collection of small villages. We brought the IT sector here, we gave jobs to youth here".
Ajit Pawar said "new and old faces" from all sections of the society will be fielded in elections to local bodies whenever they are conducted.
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Private bus operators in Karnataka to hike fares by 20-30 pc after fuel price rise
Bengaluru (PTI): In the wake of the hike in fuel prices, private bus operators have decided to increase fares by 20-30 per cent, depending on the route, effective from Friday midnight.
They have also called for government subsidies, a reduction in cess, and lower road taxes to improve the situation.
"The situation for bus owners in the state is already distressing due to high road tax and the impact of the Shakti scheme (free bus travel for women in government buses). On top of this, fuel prices have increased," Karnataka State Bus Owners’ Association President S Nataraj Sharma said.
"This will impose a burden of Rs 15,000 per vehicle per month on bus owners. If an owner has three buses, the burden will be Rs 45,000 to Rs 50,000 per month," he added.
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Speaking to reporters, he said the situation has made it inevitable for owners to increase fares by 20-30 per cent, depending on the route, under current conditions.
The increase may be roughly Rs 200 per seat, he added.
"For example, the current bus fare from Bengaluru to Belagavi is around Rs 1,000–Rs 1,200, which is likely to rise to Rs 1,350–Rs 1,400. Similarly, fares from Bengaluru to Mangaluru or Udupi currently range from Rs 900–Rs 1,000 and are expected to go up to Rs 1,100–Rs 1,200," he said.
Petrol and diesel prices were each hiked by Rs 3 per litre on Friday, the first rate increase in more than four years, amid mounting losses for fuel retailers due to surging global crude prices in the wake of the West Asia conflict.
The increase comes a couple of weeks after the Assembly elections concluded in Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, and Puducherry.
