JOIN USFoxconn row: 'Gujarat is no Pakistan', says Fadnavis; alleges graft in availing subsidy during Uddhav govt
Amid mounting criticism over Gujarat bagging a multi-billion Vedanta-Foxconn semiconductor project, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Friday said the neighbouring state was not a part of Pakistan and alleged a "10 per cent commission" had to be paid for availing any subsidy during the previous Maha Vikas Agahdi (MVA) government.
Without naming the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena, Fadnavis targeted the party for opposing big-ticket projects like a refinery in Maharashtra which had the potential of taking the state ahead of others for the next ten years, as he slammed his former ally for stalling the Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train and Mumbai Metro 3 infrastructure ventures.
Fadnavis said after taking over as the deputy chief minister in June-end, he personally met Vedanta chairman Anil Agarwal and Maharashtra even offered a tailor-made package to the company to match up the Gujarat offer, but he was told a decision to move the semiconductor unit to Gujarat was in its final stages.
“Maharashtra was behind Gujarat (in attracting foreign investment) when you (the Maha Vikas Aghadi) were in power (November 2019-June 2022). In the next two years, we will take Maharashtra ahead of Gujarat. We will definitely do it. “Gujarat is no Pakistan. It is our brother. This is a healthy competition (in attracting projects). We want to go ahead of Karnataka, everyone,” said the deputy CM at an event here. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), to which Fadnavis belongs, rules Gujarat and it is also a part of the Eknath Shinde-led government in Maharashtra. He alleged that a "10 per cent commission" had to be paid when the MVA was in power for every subsidy that was announced.
“In the last two years, for every subsidy announced, a 10 per cent commission had to be paid. How much corruption should there be? From 2014-19, not a single penny had to be given. If you have to pay a bribe for getting that subsidy then imagine the condition,” Fadnavis said.
Fadnavis was chief minister from 2014-19 when he headed the BJP-Shiv Sena government. A blame-game erupted in Maharashtra following the announcement earlier this week that the joint venture semiconductor project of the Indian conglomerate Vedanta and Taiwanese electronics giant Foxconn, proposed to be set up near Pune city earlier, will come up in Gujarat now.
The Uddhav Thackeray-led faction of the Shiv Sena, the NCP and the Congress, all constituents of the MVA, have sought to corner the Shinde-BJP government over the Rs 1.54 lakh crore plant going to Gujarat.