New Delhi: The Congress on Tuesday slammed Devendra Fadnavis and his BJP party after he submitted his resignation as Maharashtra chief minister to Governor BS Koshyari. The development came hours after the Supreme Court mandated a floor test in the legislative assembly and after Fadnavis’s deputy, Ajit Pawar of the NCP, quit.
“This is a victory of constitutional democracy. They thought that through horse trading, they can form the government,” said senior Congress leader KC Venugopal. “This is not only a failure of Devendra Fadnavis, but also a slap on the faces of their masters sitting in Delhi.”
The Congress said the “turn of events” in Maharashtra has also brought into question President Ram Nath Kovind’s role. Demanding Koshyari’s resignation, Congress spokesperson Manish Tewari said at a press conference, “The Maharashtra Governor should shed his RSS-BJP cloak and invite the ‘Maha Vikas Aghadi’ of the Sena-NCP-Congress to form the government. The turn of events has also put the role of the President under the scanner.”
Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala said the Fadnavis government was formed on lies and deception and crashed like a house of cards.
Congress leader Prithviraj Chavan said the party has requested the Maharashtra governor to accept Fadnavis's resignation and invite the Sena-NCP-Congress alliance to form the government.
“We demand that Uddhav Thackeray be invited to form the government in Maharashtra immediately," said Chavan. According to sources, the Congress is likely to ask for the Governor’s resignation and may even approach the President.
NCP spokesperson Nawab Malik described Fadnavis’s reaction as the “victory of the people of Maharashtra”. Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot said, “In the end, the truth always wins. Today, on the occasion of Constitution Day, democratic values have won and the people of Maharashtra have got justice. On Constitution Day, this incident has been recorded in history, the Constitution has won and the real face of BJP has been revealed.”
Former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister and Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Akhilesh Yadav said those following the Constitution won and the losers defeated on Constitution Day. “Taking moral responsibility for the misuse of special constitutional power, everyone whose ‘morning mistake’ has embarrassed the country in front of the whole world should also resign,” he said.
The JD(S) in Karnataka on Tuesday termed the collapse of the BJP government in Maharashtra as "a victory for democracy" and lesson to the BJP "to shed its lust for power".
Former Karnataka Chief Minister and JD(S) leader HD Kumaraswamy said in a tweet, "Popular adage reap what you sow aptly applies to Fadnavis. He has harvested the bounty he has sown."
Accusing the BJP of violating the principles of the Constitution to form a "government at midnight in Maharashtra", West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said the Supreme Court verdict and Fadnavis' resignation have shown that the Constitution cannot be subverted.
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