“The Opposition is trying to malign my image. The place in the photo is our private residence in Thane, where my father and I have attended to people’s problems for years. It is not an official residence of the CM nor his government office,” said Shrikant Shinde in his response. (Image source: ravikantvarpe/ Twitter)A photograph of Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde’s son, Lok Sabha MP Shrikant Shinde, purportedly sitting in the CM’s chair has sparked a controversy, with sections of the Opposition accusing Shinde’s son of disrespecting his father’s office. Shrikant, meanwhile, denied the allegations, claiming that he was photographed at his private residence in Thane and not at the Chief Minister’s office.
खा.श्रीकांत शिंदे यांना सुपर सीएम झाल्याबद्दल हार्दिक शुभेच्छा.
मुख्यमंत्र्यांच्या गैरहजेरीत त्यांचे चिरंजीव मुख्यमंत्री पदाचा कारभार सांभाळतात.लोकशाहीचा गळा घोटण्याचे काम सुरूय.हा कोणता राजधर्म आहे?असा कसा हा धर्मवीर?@mieknathshinde @DrSEShinde pic.twitter.com/rpOZimHnxL— Ravikant Varpe – रविकांत वरपे (@ravikantvarpe) September 23, 2022
“The allegations are ridiculous,” Shrikant tweeted on Friday evening. “The place in the photo is our private residence in Thane, where my father and I have attended to people’s problems for years. It is not the official residence of the CM or his government office.” In the image, which has since been shared widely on social media, Shrikant appears to be sitting in an office, surrounded by officials, with some documents in his hand.
खुर्चीच्या मुद्द्यावरून आज जी टिका करण्यात आली ती हास्यास्पद आहे.मी ज्या खुर्चीत बसलो ती मुख्यमंत्री एकनाथ शिंदे साहेबांची असल्याचा दावा करत त्यांच्या गैरहजेरीत काम पाहतो,असे उल्लेख करून समाजमाध्यमांवर पसरविले.मी जेथे बसलो होतो ते आमचे खासगी निवासस्थान आहेhttps://t.co/QrMA9DACHx
— Dr Shrikant Eknath Shinde (@DrSEShinde) September 23, 2022
Sharing the image on Twitter, Ravikant Varpe, State Spokesperson for NCP, sarcastically called Shrikant “super CM” and accused the Shindes of strangling democracy. “Best wishes to Shrikant Shinde for becoming Super CM,” he said. “In the absence of the Chief Minister, his Chiranjeev is in charge of the post of Chief Minister. This is the strangulation of democracy. What kind of Rajdharma is this?”
In a video shared on Facebook, the Lok Sabha MP clarified that the office at their private residence was used by both him and his father. “CM Shinde works for 18 to 20 hours. He’s a capable CM and no one needs to fill in his chair in his absence,” he said.
After the accusation by NCP, Nationalist Congress Party on Saturday accused Sheetal Mhatre, spokesperson of the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena faction, of sharing a “morphed” photo of Baramati MP Supriya Sule sitting on the chief minister’s chair, and urged the Mumbai police to take action. In the post, Mhatre has also asked “Look who is sitting on the chief minister’s chair”
हा फोटो बघा.. कोण कोणाच्या खुर्चीवर बसलयं ?? pic.twitter.com/8UUb5VzMQR
— sheetal mhatre (@sheetalmhatre1) September 23, 2022
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