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Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Tuesday heaped praise on NCP chief Sharad Pawar and his family for their development vision.
Thackeray was in Baramati, the NCP chief’s hometown, to inaugurate an Incubation & Innovation Centre and Scientific Research Institute, set up under the Agricultural Development Trust, Baramati, where Sharad Pawar, Deputy CM and NCP leader Ajit Pawar and prominent industry personalities were present.
The CM’s visit comes a day after NCP leader and former state home minister Anil Deshmukh was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in a money laundering case.
The Thackeray-led Shiv Sena shares power with the NCP and Congress in Maharashtra.
Calling Sharad Pawar a “youthful leader”, Thackeray said the NCP president has shown the “sun of development” to everyone.
“Pawar saheb is leading the state, he is leading several such institutes here, and while he is continuously working, his family is also working tirelessly towards one obsession, and that is development,” he said.
Thackeray said in politics, opponents are a must.
“We were also opponents and we used to criticise also, but the entire world knows about the friendship between Pawar saheb and (late Sena supremo) Balasaheb Thackeray. Balasaheb used to tell us that we should go to Baramati and see what Sharad Babu has done over there,” the CM said.
Referring to the incubation centre, Thackeray, in a veiled reference to the BJP-Shiv Sena alliance which got snapped after the 2019 Maharashtra Assembly polls, said there should be an incubation centre in politics.
“We (Shiv Sena) had opened one incubation centre 25 years ago. We also hatched some unwanted eggs and everyone knows what happened later,” he quipped.
The CM said Ajit Pawar was telling him that Baramati would become the no. 2 centre in education, after Pune.
“According to me, as far as teaching lessons in politics is concerned, Baramati is already number one. I am sure the way Pawar and his family are working towards development, it will become one of the best centres not only in Maharashtra, but in the country,” he said.
The CM also appreciated the Agricultural Development Trust, Baramati, for bringing in best practices from abroad and implementing them.
He also lauded the NCP president for bringing a transformational change in Baramati and surrounding areas.
On the occasion, Sharad Pawar said the Agricultural Development Trust has been constantly striving for innovation and thanked CM for coming to Baramati and inaugurating the innovation centre.
“The trust strives to use the best innovative practices and knowledge available in institutes worldwide and in India and use them for rural areas,” he said.
The NCP leader said he would strive to set up a centre of Artificial Intelligence in Baramati.
Assuring full support of the state government, Chief Minister Thackeray said he would never come in the way of good work, and if there are obstacles and red-tapism, those will be removed.
“We have to do all those things which will make our state not only number one in the country, but also in the world and we will do it for sure,” he said.
While wishing everyone for Diwali, the CM said some people are talking about bursting bombs after the festival.
“I would like to tell them that burst the bomb, burst crackers, but ensure there is no smoke as we are yet to overcome COVID-19,” he quipped.
Notably, Maharashtra NCP minister Nawab Malik on Monday sought to link the BJP with an alleged narcotics dealer by tweeting the latter’s photograph with former chief minister Devendra Fadnavis’ wife Amruta Fadnavis.
Devendra Fadnavis later said Malik’s tweet reflected his mentality, and claimed that he will burst a bomb after Diwali by making revelations about the minister’s underworld links , which he will also share with Sharad Pawar.
