BOMBAY, 17 June 2006 — Prakash Mahajan, the younger brother of late BJP leader Pramod Mahajan, yesterday evening joined the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS), the political party launched by Raj Thackeray, nephew of Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray.
Welcoming Prakash Mahajan, MNS President Raj Thackeray, appointed him as the chief organizer of the party.
Meanwhile Pramod Mahajan’s son Rahul, his mother and sister, heaped praises on the BJP and reaffirmed their loyalty toward the party.
Asked how Prakash had joined the MNS, while he was closely connected with the BJP, Raj said that the former had met him during his tour to Marathwada in January and expressed the desire to join the MNS then.
While the news of Prakash Mahajan joining the MNS is considered a snub and a big blow to the BJP, party spokesman Prakash Javdekar putting up a brave face and trying to do some damage control exercise said that the BJP was not surprised by the move of Prakash joining the party floated by Raj, as it had anticipated the development some months ago.
When asked if the turnaround by Prakash was a fall-out of his nephew Rahul Mahajan’s drug abuse issue, Javdekar denied that the two issues were related.
Prakash Mahajan criticized BJP leader Sushma Swaraj for her statement that the alleged drug abuse case against Rahul Mahajan was a “family matter,” and took her to task for not having even the basic courtesy of visiting Rahul Mahajan in the hospital.
Judiciary Reprimands
Maharashtra Government
The Democratic Front government in Maharashtra got a taste of the anger of the judiciary when the Bombay High Court reprimanded it for its undue generosity and political largesse toward dead legislators.
Declaring the government’s resolution passed in August 2004 waiving rent arrears of over Rs.1.5 million from 65 deceased legislators, a two member bench of Justices R.M. Lodha and A.S. Bagga, termed it as “illegal, unconstitutional and void.”
The judges ordered the state government to recover the arrears from the pensions paid to the families of the deceased legislators of both the houses. And if the outstanding arrears were more than the pensions, then the amount should be recovered from the heirs estates, the judges said.
Taking the government to task, the judges said that the government had failed to answer the court’s query as to which provision of law authorized the state Cabinet to take write off arrears. “Every single penny of the public fund has to be accounted for,” said Lodha. “Has there been a single instance when the state government has waived a loan of a government employee, who died after years’ of service?” he asked.
Reacting angrily to the state government’s counsels submission that the arrears of Indian Rupees 1.5 million was not a significant amount, Judge Lodha said, “As far as judicial perspective is concerned it is a substantial amount. Such political largesse cannot be allowed.” It was for the second time in a week that the state government had to face the ire of the judiciary.
On Monday, another bench of the Bombay High Court had delivered a judgment directing the state government to attach properties of ministers, Members of Legislative Assembly and of Legislative Council whose arrears of overstaying in the government accommodation exceeded Indian Rupees 50,000. The judges had also approved the suggestion of the government pleader to allow the government to deduct the arrears from the salaries and pensions of the ministers and legislators.
