Cabinet clears govt nominees of four directors on Gokul milk union board; Satej Patil objects

Mumbai, Nov 4: The Mahayuti government has decided to appoint four expert (co-opted) directors from the government's side to the Gokul milk union. The state Cabinet approved the decision at its meeting.

The Cabinet passed one more proposal at its meeting in Mumbai today. Under it, the government will directly appoint directors to those cooperative institutions in the state whose business exceeds Rs 3,000 crore, and these directors will also have the right to vote.

At present, the group led by Satej (Bunty) Patil holds a majority in Gokul. But if the government appoints these four members from outside and gives them voting rights, the picture for the election of Gokul's chairman could change. For this reason the Maha Vikas Aghadi, and Patil in particular, are sharply opposing the decision. Patil has said earlier that it amounts to strangling democracy.

A tussle is under way over the appointment of the chairman of the Kolhapur District Cooperative Milk Producers' Union, or Gokul. In the recent election, the Rajarshi Shahu Shetkari Samvichari Aghadi won 13 seats, while the Mahayuti won 12. A quorum of 14 members is required for the meeting to elect the chairman, and so the chairman has not yet been elected.

Patil has made a strong statement on the chairman's election. He said: "I will adopt every legal route there is. I will not sit quiet; five and a half lakh farmers have given this mandate." According to Patil, preparations have been made to take to the streets if the people's mandate is rejected.

Patil also took a swipe at the Mahayuti. He said that despite having a full majority, the Mahayuti is seeking the support of two directors merely to complete the quorum, and called this a laughable statement by the Mahayuti. He said that if that is the case, "we are five corporators short in the municipal corporation, so the Mahayuti should support us and make our candidate the mayor."

Satej Patil also said that if voters have given him the mandate to sit in the opposition, it should be accepted.