Two hosts & two negotiators of 'Operation Lotus' in Maharashtra
India Today
As the political crisis unfolds in Maharashtra, top BJP leaders have played hosts and negotiators as they executed ‘Operation Lotus’.
Maharashtra is in the midst of political uncertainty after Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde and several other MLAs on Tuesday went silent and appeared to revolt against the party, causing the major political parties to huddle. Shinde and other MLAs arrived in Guwahati, Assam, this morning. 40 MLAs, Shinde insisted, were behind him.
The political crisis was triggered after Maharashtra minister Eknath Shinde and a few MLAs arrived at the hotel in Surat late on Monday night, hours after the Legislative Council elections, in which the BJP won the fifth seat despite having insufficient representatives in the Assembly. This outcome may have been caused by suspected cross-voting from the ruling coalition in addition to support from Independent MLAs and MLAs from smaller parties. There have been reports and speculations that Shinde and other MLAs may join the BJP in an effort to overthrow the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government.
Before being flown to Guwahati today morning, they were camping at a hotel in Surat. Eknath Shinde and other Sena MLAs were camped at the hotel Le Meridian in Surat. According to sources, CR Patil, chief of the Gujarat BJP unit, is the main force behind Shinde's uprising against Uddhav Thackeray. He acted like a host when the Sena MLA's arrived in Surat. Patil cancelled all of his scheduled appointments upon the arrival of Shinde and his backers. He rushed to Surat from Ahmedabad to oversee the developments. Additionally, Gujarat Police increased security at the hotel where Sena MLAs were staying.
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CR Patil originally hailed from Maharashtra's Jalgaon but had moved to Gujarat. The idea of housing Shinde and his supporters at a five-star hotel in Surat was designed by him. The BJP party was assured that the rebel MLAs would have sufficient security because Surat is the hometown of CR Patil. According to reports, CR Patil had even met Eknath Shinde in Surat hotel. Throughout the entire Gujarat sojourn of Shinde, CR Patel was in close touch with him.
CR Patil was appointed Gujarat state president in July 2020. The 67-year-old leader joined the BJP in 1989. He is a three-time Lok Sabha MP and currently representing the Navsari constituency in Gujarat. He is said to be very close to PM Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah. He is one of the most effective "backroom boys" of PM Modi. Since 2014, Patil has been in charge of several significant duties across electorally significant Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, including being made-in-charge of the PM's constituency, Varanasi, and being involved in cleaning up the Ganga ghats in Varanasi.
On Wednesday, the focus shifted to Guwahati from Surat as the 40 MLAs under Shinde's leadership landed in the capital city of BJP-ruled Assam. Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma entered the Maharashtra political crisis when he went to the hotel where the Shiv Sena rebels were staying. Himanta Biswa Sarma visited the Radisson Blu hotel in Guwahati prior to the arrival of the Maharashtra MLAs at the airport.
