GG News Bureau
Mumbai, 10th August. The opposition Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar) (NCP(SP)) launched its “Shiv Swarajya Yatra” on Friday, marking the start of its campaign for the upcoming Maharashtra assembly elections. The launch took place a day after the ruling NCP kicked off its own outreach program.
The yatra began from the historic Shivneri Fort in Junnar tehsil, Pune district, the birthplace of the revered Maratha warrior-king Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. Maharashtra NCP chief Jayant Patil, addressing the gathering, declared, “By taking the blessings of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj here at Shivneri Fort, we are starting our yatra with a resolve to bring back the people’s government (rayateche rajya) in the state.”
Patil emphasized that the yatra, inspired by Shivaji Maharaj’s ideals of self-rule, aims to highlight the alleged “corruption and chaos” under the current Shiv Sena-BJP-NCP government. He asserted that the results of the recent Lok Sabha elections demonstrated strong support for the NCP(SP) and its allies in the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), which includes the Congress and Shiv Sena (UBT). In the Lok Sabha polls, the MVA secured 30 of the 48 seats in Maharashtra, while the ruling Mahayuti alliance won only 17.
“Our leaders, including Lok Sabha MP Amol Kolhe and other functionaries, will travel across the state to engage with the people,” Patil stated.
During the yatra’s launch event, a minor scare occurred when the crane bucket carrying NCP(SP) leaders Patil, Rohini Khadse, Kolhe, and Mehboob Shaikh tilted precariously while they were garlanding a statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. Fortunately, no one was injured, though a video of the incident has gone viral on social media.
The day before, Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar had launched the ruling NCP’s ‘Jan Sanman Yatra’ from Dindori in Nashik district, marking the beginning of their campaign for the assembly elections.
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