Maharashtra’s first chief minister Yashwant Balwantrao Chavan is broadly acknowledged as a “key architect of a contemporary and progressive Maharashtra”. Among the many tallest Congress leaders, Chavan additionally served as a Union minister within the Cupboards of Jawaharlal Nehru, Lal Bahadur Shashtri, Indira Gandhi and Charan Singh.
Thirty-nine years after his passing away, Chavan continues to be an iconic determine in Maharashtra politics. In latest days the 2 factions of the NCP – led by social gathering founder Sharad Pawar and his nephew and Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar – appeared to have vied with one another to assert Chavan’s legacy.
On Tuesday, in an open letter to the folks of Maharashtra on his completion of 100 days because the Deputy Chief Minister within the coalition authorities — involving the Eknath Shinde Sena, BJP and his NCP faction – Ajit hailed Chavan’s legacy, calling him the “supply of his inspiration”.
Declaring himself because the NCP nationwide president, Ajit mentioned his social gathering would comply with within the foot steps of Chavan whose politics, he famous, was devoted to creating the empowerment of Bahujan (oppressed, backwards, Dalits and minorities) an integral facet of the event mannequin. He skipped any point out of his mentor Pawar.
Ajit’s letter said, “We’ll pursue the Y B Chavan’s path – Vasa Vikasacha, Vichar Bahujanacha (we inherit the legacy of improvement and welfare of the plenty).”
One other transfer made by Ajit was to ask his faction to make use of Chavan’s picture on its posters and banners rather than Pawar. On the Ajit NCP’s operate held at Nashik this week, Pawar’s image was changed with Chavan’s on its publicity materials.
After the NCP’s break up, Pawar had warned the Ajit group in opposition to utilizing his images on its posters and banners. “I’ve a proper to resolve on who ought to and who mustn’t use my images when I’m alive,” he mentioned.
Pawar’s mentor was Chavan, who gave him his first break in electoral politics by fielding him as a Congress candidate within the Baramati Meeting seat in 1967. Pawar’s political profession spanning almost six a long time has a visual affect of the Maratha stalwart.
Barely sooner or later after Ajit break up the NCP and joined the Shinde-BJP authorities together with his loyalist MLAs on July 2, Pawar visited the Chavan memorial at Karad. After paying his tributes to his mentor, Pawar introduced, “I’ll tour all the state and rebuild the NCP.” July 3 being Guru Poornima, he additionally mentioned he selected the fitting day to start his new journey.
With each NCP camps staking their respective claims on the social gathering’s title and ballot image “clock”, the matter has been pending earlier than the Election Fee for its determination.
A senior NCP minister mentioned, “We have been utilizing Sharad Pawar picture out of respect. It was not for political causes. But when he doesn’t need his images, we settle for. However nobody can cease us from utilizing the images of Y B Chavan Saheb. He stays one of many biggest leaders of Maharashtra and India. No one has even come near his stature by way of politics and persona.”
Pawar’s daughter and NCP working president Supriya Sule was fast to level out how Chavan had all the time maintained a distance from the RSS. “In his autobiography, Chavan had said, ‘I consider (Ok B Hedgewar) solely desires to type a fascist organisation of a sure class of individuals. We now have no obligation to take action. I’ve all the time stayed 4 steps away from RSS.’ Right now, they (Ajit faction) are taking title of Y B Chavan. However however becoming a member of these very forces whom he opposed,” she mentioned.
Chavan has been the one chief from the state who dealt with all 4 high portfolios on the Centre, together with Residence, Finance, Defence and Exterior Affairs.
Chavan succeeded Morarji Desai because the CM of then Bombay State from November 1956 to April 1960. After the creation of Maharashtra state on Might 1, 1960, Chavan took over as its
first CM, persevering with on this place until November 1962. He’s credited with bringing within the agriculture land ceiling legislation and laying the muse for cooperative and industrial improvement fashions.
Chavan had a humble background. Hailing from a village in Devrastre Satara, he accomplished his BA in political science and historical past from Rajaram School Kolhapur (1934). He received his legislation diploma from College of Bombay (Now Mumbai).
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In 1946, Chavan received elected as an MLA from South Satara in then State of Bombay. In 1962, he was elected unopposed from the Nashik Lok Sabha constituency.
After the Indo-China conflict in 1962 that led to the resignation of Krishna Menon, Nehru inducted Chavan as the brand new defence minister. The event marked a brand new chapter in Maharashtra politics. It was perceived as Maharashtra speeding to lend a serving to hand to Delhi. It gave rise to a well-liked saying, “Sahayadri dhavla, Himalayacha hakela” (Sahayadri mountain vary rushed to the decision of Himalayas).
Between 1962 and 1970, Chavan remained a minister within the Cupboards of Nehru, Shastri and Indira, who entrusted him with high portfolios. He additionally served because the Deputy Prime Minister from July 1979 to January 1980 when Charan Singh was the PM.