A day after the Opposition`s protest march against the Election Commission over alleged irregularities in the voters` list, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Sunday said people of the state will back the ruling Mahayuti in the upcoming local body polls based on its work and development agenda, reported news agency PTI.
Talking to reporters after performing `Kartiki Ekadashi` puja at the famous Vitthal temple in Pandharpur, Shinde said that the Mahayuti government has stood by farmers who suffered large-scale losses due to rains in the last few months.
The government announced a relief package of nearly Rs 32,000 crore, and disbursed the sum during Diwali, he said, reported PTI.
Shinde said that the decision on farm loan waiver will be taken by June 30, 2026, after a committee appointed to look into the matter gives its recommendations by the first week of April.
“People give importance to work, and our agenda is clear. Our agenda is development, which is why we secured a landslide victory in the state assembly elections. People will back us in the local body polls based on our work and development,” he said, reported PTI.
The Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), comprising the Congress, Shiv Sena (UBT) and NCP (SP), along with Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS), held a protest march in Mumbai on Saturday against alleged irregularities in the voters` list, which the Opposition has been claiming were helping the ruling BJP.
The Opposition accused the EC of turning a blind eye to voters` list irregularities, such as multiple entries, wrongful deletions, and additions, reported PTI.
It asserted that local body polls in Maharashtra should be held only after these shortcomings are rectified.
The Supreme Court has directed the Maharashtra State Election Commission to conduct the local body polls in the state by January 31, 2026.
Shinde unveils 51-foot statue of Lord Vitthal in Thane
Meanwhile, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde unveiled a 51 feet tall statue of Lord Vitthal at Punyashloka Ahilyadevi Holkar Upvan Ghat in Thane on Friday evening.
Addressing a huge gathering, which included a large number of `warkaris`, he said it was a special day for Thanekars as “Vitthuraya has given darshan even before the Mahapuja of Kartiki Ekadashi“.
“I come from a warkari and farmer family. As a child, I used to go to Pandharpur with my grandparents and parents. Today, I have come here not as a Deputy Chief Minister, but as a devotee of Vitthal,” Shinde added.
(With inputs from PTI)
