Mumbai: Shiv Sena minister Bharat Gogawale on Tuesday remained conspicuously absent at the annual meeting of the Raigad District Planning and Development Committee (DPDC) here. Tensions between the ruling allies Nationalist Congress Party and Shiv Sena in Maharashtra over the post of guardian minister of Raigad surfaced again, with two local Shiv Sena MLAs protesting about not being invited to the meeting.
Earlier, NCP's Aditi Tatkare, Women and Child Development Minister, was appointed as guardian minister, but the decision was put on hold as the Shiv Sena's Gogawale too was keen on the post. Raigad is the home district of both the leaders. The meeting was held online from deputy Chief Minister and NCP chief Ajit Pawar's office in `Mantralaya', the state headquarters, and attended by Aditi Tatkare and a few government officials.
But Gogawale, Minister for the Employment Guarantee Scheme, did not attend. Local Sena MLAs Mahendra Dalvi and Mahendra Thorve too were not present. "We were not sent any official invitation. If this was an official meeting about Raigad's development, the district collector should have invited all the MLAs. We were not even provided with an online link to join," claimed Dalvi.
But an official in Ajit Pawar's office said that as Nashik and Raigad districts do not have guardian ministers at present, only ministers from the districts were invited. It was a pre-budget meeting and hence held in Finance Minister Pawar's office, he said. "Aditi Tatkare and Bharat Gogawale were invited as representatives of Raigad. But Gogawale did not attend," the official said.
