BJP leadership, partners will take care of Mahayuti's CM face: Bawankule

Maharashtra Bharatiya Janata Party BJP chief Chandrashekhar Bawankule on Wednesday said there has been no discussion so far on who will be the chief ministerial face of the ruling Mahayuti coalition in Maharashtra assembly polls due later this year reported news agency PTIThe partys central leadership and alliance partners will take the call on it Chandrashekhar Bawankule said asserting that Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis remains the leader of his party in the stateBawankule was talking to reporters at Nagpur airport on his return after attending the BJPs core group meeting in Delhi on Tuesday reported PTIHe said they discussed the reasons for the belowpar performance of Mahayuti comprising BJP Eknath Shindeled Shiv Sena and NCP under Ajit Pawar in Maharashtra and why its vote share was left behind by 03 per cent compared to the Maha Vikas AghadiIn the recently concluded Lok Sabha polls the Mahayuti bagged just 17 of the states 48 seats with the BJPs tally coming drastically down to nine from the 23 it won in 2019 By contrast the MVA bloc of Congress Shiv Sena UBT and NCP SP won 30 seatsWe discussed how we can work towards filling that gap in the coming state polls he said reported PTIAsked if Fadnavis would be the CM face of the alliance Bawankule said their focus is on the development of the people of Maharashtra unlike the Maha Vikas Aghadi which has fivesix CM aspirants reported PTIWhenever a decision over CMs face will need to be taken our central leadership Maharashtra incharge Bhupendra Yadav and Ashwini Vaishnaw and Mahayuti leaders Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar will sit and decide he said reported PTIAsked about BJP leader Girish Mahajans comment that Fadnavis wont resign from the post of state home minister Bawankule said their MLAs and the state unit have urged him to continue and help the BJPWe understand that he has accepted our appeal We also understand that the BJPs central leadership has accepted this appeal he said reported PTIBawankule was also asked about NCP SP chief Sharad Pawars recent statement it was his duty to thank Prime Minister Narendra Modi for MVAs good performance in the Lok Sabha polls as wherever the PM held roadshows and rallies they won from thereBawankule said Modi ji may have said just a word but the opposition has been using indecent language against him for the past one and a half years and people of Maharashtra have taken a note of it Pawar Saheb should also analyse how MVA leaders made personal attacks on Modi ji reported PTIHe said the BJP will take out a Dhanyawad Yatra across the state to thank the votersAsked if NCP chief Ajit Pawar would stick with Mahayuti for the assembly polls Bawankule said the alliance partners would have to do good work and move on About apparent rumblings within the NCP over Chhagan Bhujbal the BJP said it wont be proper for him to comment on thatTo a query on BJPs criticism of state Congress chief Nana Patole over a video showing a worker of the grand old party washing his feet Bawankule called it British rule mentality He has insulted his post and should do some introspection about it he added reported PTIWith inputs from PTI