Gadkari seeks all-party support on Vidarbha issue

Nagpur stalwart says BJP would support motion for Vidarbha statehood, if tabled in Parliament

Former BJP president Nitin Gadkari has appealed to all political parties to lend support to the issue of carving out a separate Vidarbha state out of Maharashtra.

"If all parties come together, no one can stop Vidarbha from becoming a separate state," Gadkari said while speaking at an all-party meeting organised by Vidarbha Economic Development (VED) Council last night.

The BJP would support the motion for Vidarbha statehood, if it was tabled in Parliament, he said.

Maharashtra BJP unit president Devendra Fadnavis said he would even resign (from his post as a MLA) for supporting the cause of Vidarbha statehood. "But, the right time for resignation is yet to come," Fadnavis said. Instead of waiting for backlog to be removed, a separate state of Vidarbha would boost development of the region, he opined.

Senior Congress leader and Maharashtra minister Nitin Raut said all political leaders of Vidarbha should create a pressure group for demanding statehood for the region.

Food and Civil Supplies Minister and senior NCP leader Anil Deshmukh alleged that some leaders took up the issue of separate Vidarbha only when they lost ministerial posts.

He appealed to all leaders and elected representatives from the region to come together for the cause.

Leaders of various parties including BJP, Congress and others were present during the programme.