Maharashtra: A sweet deal on sugar mills

A sweet deal before the Assembly election with the blessings of Amit Shah, home minister, and, more importantly, minister of ‘cooperation’. That is how the Shinde government’s volte-face on sanctioning more loans for cooperative sugar mills is being seen in the state.

Reversing the earlier decision against new loans, the government has sanctioned Rs 1,898 crore for 13 sugar mills in Maharashtra, five of which are controlled by BJP leaders, and seven by leaders of the NCP (Ajit Pawar). All 13 are controlled by parties in the ruling Mahayuti alliance.

While the ‘racket’ is not new — previous governments have also indulged in such skullduggery — this particular decision raised eyebrows because it was so brazen that even the fig leaf was dropped. No sugar mill controlled by politicians in the Opposition figured in the list of beneficiaries.

An alarmed Sharad Pawar, once described as the sugar daddy of the state, rushed to chief minister Eknath Shinde’s official bungalow to remonstrate and seek help for other mills facing financial hardship.

While both leaders posted videos and photographs, the outcome may have been less than happy for the veteran sugar baron. In the video, Shinde appeared cold and correct. While he did walk up to the door to receive Pawar, he turned back without greeting him, indicated a chair for the senior leader, and sat down, getting up only when a bouquet was pressed upon him to hand over to his guest.

The cooperative sugar mills are required to repay the loans in the next eight years at an interest rate of 9.81 per cent. Historically, beneficiaries of such loans default and their loans are either written off or restructured. Some of the beneficiaries shut down and declare bankruptcy. While the state government acts as the guarantor, the loans are disbursed by the National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC) under the ministry of cooperation headed by Amit Shah.

The Opposition is naturally upset. It accuses the state government of squandering public money for political purposes ahead of the elections due in October.

There are 195 cooperative sugar mills in the state, largely concentrated in western Maharashtra and Marathwada. The BJP did not do well in these two regions in the recently held Lok Sabha elections. It is, therefore, sparing no effort to wrest control of the sugar mills i.e., wean them away from the influence of Sharad Pawar.

In the absence of modernisation, many of the mills are actually sick. Most of them already have huge debts and use the loans to pay wages to their workers as well as pay farmers for the sugarcane. Maintenance costs and pensions swallow up the rest.

Sugar production in the state has been dwindling — Maharashtra fell behind Uttar Pradesh over the past three years. The minimum support price for sugarcane has also been stagnant for several years and arrears are due to many of the 25 million workers and farmers engaged in the industry.

Before the Lok Sabha election, the NCDC had sanctioned loans to 21 cooperative sugar mills, of which 19 were controlled by BJP leaders. In October last year, mills controlled by BJP leaders were favoured with similar loans, disappointing leaders in the Opposition.

‘Thackeri’ bhasha

In the past, BJP leaders in the state often praised 'Thackeri' bhasha (the language used by Thackeray). That was when Uddhav Thackeray was aligned with the BJP and targeted NCP and Congress leaders. To their discomfort, they now find themselves at the receiving end of Thackeri bhasha as Uddhav attacks them in his sharp and sarcastic style. The leader of the original Shiv Sena is giving it back to the BJP, having lost no time in retaliating to Amit Shah calling him the chief of the "Aurangzeb fan club".

Pune was the site for the verbal battle for both. Uddhav called the home minister the "political descendant" of Afghan invader Ahmed Shah Abdali. Both are ‘Shahs’. Just as Ahmed Shah was a raider and invader, Amit Shah specialised in raiding Opposition parties, engineering defections and scarpering with the loot.

Uddhav also said, without naming BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis, that one does not challenge ‘bedbugs’ — one simply crushes them. For good measure, he declared this was all-out war. The state had room for just one leader — him or Fadnavis.

Momentarily taken aback, Fadnavis reacted by saying such language betrayed Thackeray’s nervousness. No takers for that story though, as most observers point out that people are lapping up Uddhav's aggressive avatar. The gentle, mild-mannered, soft-spoken erstwhile chief minister is now seen as a fiery Opposition leader, taking on the high and mighty in the BJP. In short, the public are loving his barbs.

Observers believe that, buoyed by their responses, Uddhav is convinced that attacking the BJP (and Shinde) is the way to reaping better electoral dividends.

Let it not go unmarked: Uddhav is also playing the victim card. Not only did the BJP engineer a split in the party and get the Election Commission of India to take away his party symbol and official status (even as the dispute remains pending before the Supreme Court), the BJP is also trying to frame him and his son Aaditya in false cases. They are planning to jail him before the elections, he tells his audiences.

Uddhav is equally acerbic on the BJP’s allegation that he has deviated from Hindutva. “I do not need any lessons on the subject from the BJP or anyone else,” he declares, asserting that he is both a Hindu and a patriot who treats every citizen equally. Citing a leaked letter from RSS activist Madhukar Deoras, Uddhav wonders if Amit Shah finds the sustained campaign against Muslims acceptable. Describing himself as an Indian who wants an inclusive India, Uddhav has been sharp in his condemnation of the BJP brand of Hindutva.

There is anyway considerable hostility in the state towards PM Narendra Modi and Amit Shah, both of whom are blamed for working against the interests of Maharashtra and Marathis. With speculation rife that the RSS wants Modi to step down once he turns 75, Thackeray is going for the jugular, observers say.

Opinion is divided on the probable response from Modi–Shah to Thackeray’s sustained attack. They could double down and go all out to win the state, by hook or crook. Or, they might knuckle under and put up no more than a token fight. The next few weeks will tell.

Is this pawn black or white?

An imprisoned and controversial former police inspector giving sound bytes to a ‘national’ and ‘pro-government’ news agency: how’s that for murky business? We’re referring to the interview of Sachin Waze, accused of planting explosives outside Mukesh Ambani’s towering home Antilia as well as the murder of businessman Mansukh Hiren.

The agency shared a video of the interview conducted while Waze was being escorted by policemen to or from the court. The timing and duration of the interview, as well as the ease with which it was conducted, left no room for doubt: it was arranged following orders from the powers that be.

Waze was categorical in saying it had nothing to do with the case against him. Rather, it was about a letter he had written against Anil Deshmukh, NCP (Sharad Pawar) leader and former home minister in the MVA government. Waze made the ‘sensational’ allegation that, while home minister, Deshmukh used to collect bribes through his PA.

Deshmukh, who is believed to be close to Sharad Pawar, and was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate under the PMLA (Prevention of Money Laundering Act) is out on bail. Before the Lok Sabha election, he alleged that BJP leader and present deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis wanted him to implicate then chief minister Uddhav Thackeray in a false case and sign an affidavit.

Deshmukh was promised that the ED would ease pressure on him and his family if he obliged. He refused. In this context, Waze’s interview to the news agency looks orchestrated. No prizes for guessing who could have orchestrated it.

Hostilities between Fadnavis and Deshmukh are such that though they recently shared a stage at an event in Nagpur, they ignored each other: not a single word was exchanged.