Raj Thackeray asks whom ruling BJP is rallying to save democracy from, cites Gokul Dairy

Mumbai: Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray has questioned the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) "Lokshahi Bachao, Arajakta Hatao" (Save Democracy, Remove Anarchy) campaign. He asked whom the party, which is in power both at the Centre and in Maharashtra, is holding rallies to save democracy from.

Thackeray alleged that the BJP talks of democracy but, when election results do not go in its favour, tries to weaken the democratic system. According to him, this may be the first instance in the country of a ruling party marching against opposition parties to save democracy.

His strongest objection was to the Maharashtra government's decision providing for government-nominated directors on the boards of large cooperative institutions. In this connection he referred to the election of the Kolhapur District Co-operative Milk Producers' Union, or Gokul Dairy, and the events that followed. Thackeray asked why, if the BJP is truly serious about protecting democracy, it did not respect the democratic process in the Gokul Dairy case. He called this the BJP's double standard. He said the party talks of democracy while in power but takes decisions according to its political interests.

Thackeray also questioned the BJP's agitations on issues such as terrorism, national security and the economy. He said the government should fulfil its responsibility on these issues and should not agitate every time and present itself as a victim.

The Gokul Dairy election was held on October 19. The panel led by Congress leader Satej Patil won 13 of the 25 director posts, while the panel backed by the Mahayuti won 12 seats. A meeting was called on October 29 to elect the chairperson, but the 12 Mahayuti-backed directors did not attend. The required quorum of 14 members was not met, so the chairperson could not be elected.

Thackeray asked why, after the BJP-backed panel failed to win a majority, the government decided to appoint five nominated directors to cooperative institutions. He alleged that the BJP should have accepted the election result and should not have made changes that could affect the balance of power in a cooperative body.

The Maharashtra Cabinet approved an amendment to the Maharashtra Co-operative Societies Act, 1960, on November 4. Under it, the government can nominate five members to the boards of eligible large cooperative institutions with annual turnover above Rs 500 crore. Four of them will have voting rights, while the fifth will be a government representative without a vote. Nominated members will not be able to contest the chairperson's election. Gokul Dairy meets this financial eligibility, so the numerical strength on its board could change.

The opposition alleges that, after the mandate given by milk producers in the election, the government's decision is an attempt to reduce the power of elected representatives. The Congress-backed panel also alleges that by changing the cooperative law after the election, the government wants to influence the milk producers' mandate.

The state government has defended the decision, saying its aim is to remove administrative deadlock in large cooperative institutions and keep them functioning. It argues that the work of institutions should not stop because a quorum is not met. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis also defended the decision, saying no panel had won a clear majority and that repeated failure to meet the quorum could have forced fresh elections.

At the end of his statement, Thackeray accused the BJP of portraying itself as a political victim. He said that over the past 12 years the opposition parties have endured the BJP's political dominance and, despite electoral defeats, have played their role in the democratic system. According to him, if the public mood in the country is now turning towards the opposition, the BJP too should learn to accept the change. He also said Maharashtra is currently facing a severe water shortage and that the BJP appears to be badly short of common sense. He called this an irony of the state's politics.

Meanwhile, the Bombay High Court has directed that a fresh meeting be called on November 10 to elect the Gokul Dairy chairperson.