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Journalism of Courage
CHIEF MINISTER Devendra Fadnavis on Friday addressed a public rally in Raver constituency in Jalgaon district in support of BJP candidate and sitting MP Raksha Khadse, the daughter-in-law of party veteran Eknath Khadse.
Fadnavis’ presence at Raver was especially significant as the CM has strained relationship with the Khadse senior, who enjoys enormous political clout in the area. Khadse was forced to resign from the Fadnavis Cabinet in 2016 after being named in a land scam. With his repeated attempts to seek reinstatement in the government failing, Khadse had often targeted the CM and his policies.
A party insider said: “Fadnavis is BJP’s star campaigner. He has to shoulder the responsibility of every candidate. Therefore, there is nothing unusual if he held a rally in Khadse’s home turf.”
Besides Raver, Fadnavis also held rallies at Jalgaon and Amalner. Taking on the Congress, Fadnavis said, “They want to curtail the powers of the armed forces. Now, what are armed forces’ special powers? They can exercise the powers to retaliate if there is an attack by a terrorist or enemy.” On the Balakot strike, he said, “India showed its might to the world. After US and Israel, it is the third country that has shown that attacks against soldiers will not go unanswered.”
