The UPA won the numbers game in New Delhi and chief minister Vilasrao Deshmukh’s political ratings went up within the Congress. But the ratings of his rival and buddy Gopinath Munde of BJP nosedived.
The play on trust at the Centre by Shiv Sena and BJP candidates has changed the political chemistry in the state. While Deshmukh is basking in glory for having been able to defect two MPs — Tukaram Renge Patil (Sena) and Haribhau Rathod (BJP) — the opposition camp is having heartburn.
Deshmukh, who had parked himself in the capital for the past three days overlooking the vote management, had his say in Karnataka where two BJP MPs switched sides in favour of the Congress. His past experience as the AICC secretary in-charge of Karnataka worked to his advantage this time. Also, his daughter-in-law Aditi Pratap Ghorpade hails from a political family in Karnataka.
Expectedly, Deshmukh got a pat from the party top brass for his crucial contribution in tilting the numbers to Congress’ favour. And now, he wants to set things in order in the state unit and the government.
“The chief minister will reshuffle and expand the cabinet in the first week of August. By then the AICC would have declared the new MPCC president,” said a senior MPCC general secretary. “The chief minister’s camp is not comfortable with caretaker MPCC chief Patangrao Kadam.”
But Deshmukh’s close friend Munde is a disheartened man after Rathod’s defection. “I am deeply hurt. I have no words to explain,” he said. When Munde was the deputy chief minister and home minister, he was confronted by a small group of activists led by Rathod demanding the rights for banjaras. Rathod had almost held Munde by the collar. Instead of punishing, Munde embraced him. Rathod became his personal assistant in 1997. In 1999, Munde got him a Lok Sabha ticket from Yavatmal, which he lost. In 2004, Munde again recommended his name and Rathod won the Lok Sabha seat from Yavatmal in Vidarbha.
Rathod has bargained a seat from the Congress-NCP quota in the next polls. His constituency Yavatmal has been merged with Washim, which is now held by Sena candidate Bhawna Gawli.
