Opposition demands BJP minister Girish Mahajan’s resignation over Dawood link

Opposition leaders on Monday demanded the resignation of the Maharashtra BJP minister Girish Mahajan over his alleged link with underworld don Dawood Ibrahim. Shiv Sena (UBT) MLC and Leader of Oppositions, state legislative council said that they got the photograph of BJP minister Girish Mahajan and other several BJP MLAs attended the wedding of a relative of Dawood Ibrahim in 2017 when Mahajan was guardian minister of Nasik district.Raising the issue in the council on Monday, NCP member Eknath Khadse demanded immediate dismissal of Mahajan. Khadse, who waved purported pictures of Mahajan at the wedding, questioned why the government initiated an SIT inquiry into Badgujar’s connections but not into the minister’s. He further alleged that several BJP leaders attended the same ceremony in May 2017, along with Mahajan.

Seconding Khadse’s opinion, leader of the opposition Ambadas Danve said if Mahajan did not resign, chief minister Eknath Shinde should sack him. When a similar allegation was raised in the lower house against Badgujar, the government acted swiftly and so it should follow suit and take the same action against Mahajan after sacking him, Danve added.Chairperson Neelam Gorhe raised objections to the way the matter was raised without a prior notice. She repeatedly tried in vain to stop Khadse and Danve and said she had granted them permission to air their contention in good faith since the notice they pressed under section 289 did not name the minister, and now they were specifically mentioning the minister. She also warned them that she would strike off from records the mention of the minister’s name. As the opposition persisted in demanding Mahajan’s resignation and an SIT probe, Gorhe adjourned the house twice.

Fadnavis urged the opposition to apologise for making baseless accusations against the minister. He clarified that the wedding attended by Mahajan and others was that of the nephew of Nashik’s prominent Muslim religious leader, Sheher-e-Khatib. Fadnavis emphasised that Sheher-E-Khatib has no connection to Dawood, and the allegations are baseless and politically motivated. Mahajan dismissed the allegations as baseless and driven by personal animosity from Khadse. He explained that the incident and pictures referred to by Khadse were nine years old and related to the wedding of a relative of Sher-e-khatib of Nashik. Mahajan asserted that he attended the event along with numerous political leaders from various parties, and the accusations were unfounded.