Newsmaker: Eknath Khadse

Making a costly call

Once an anti-corruption crusader, Maharashtra Revenue Minister Eknath Khadse is at the centre of a controversy himself.

As the leader of Opposition in the Maharashtra Assembly from 2010-2014, Khadse had made the lives of

Congress-NCP leaders miserable by implicating them in one scandal after another.

Now the tables seem to have turned. From illegal land deals to links with contractors who were awarded big-ticket irrigation projects in the state, allegations are flying thick and fast against him. The most startling of these is that Khadse had been in touch with Dawood Ibrahim. Aam Aadmi Party spokesperson Preeti Sharma Menon has alleged, citing records from a Pakistani telecom company, that calls were made from Dawood's house in Karachi to a mobile number registered in Khadse's name.

Khadse has rubbished the charges, saying the number linked to his name has not been in use for over a hear. But the chorus against him is growing louder with the Opposition gunning for his resignation. For now, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has directed the Anti-Terrorism Squad to probe into the allegations. If the charges are proven, it could put the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party in a tight spot.

Khadse has continuously won the Assembly seat from Muktainagar in his home-town, Jalgaon, since 1990, and has fashioned himself as an anti-corruption crusader over the years. The 63-year-old was a confidante of Gopinath Munde and became an obvious choice to lead the party in the Assembly after Munde's death.

Khadse's supporters are agitated at the mud-slinging. Posters drawing parallels between Khadse and Munde have been put up across Maharashtra with a message that they will not tolerate any attempts to tarnish the reputation of their leader.

While BJP is keen to show it is not taking these allegations lightly, party president Amit Shah has left the final decision on his fate on Fadnavis. The relationship between Khadse and Fadnavis has not been the most cordial in recent years. Khadse was the front-runner for the chief minister's post after the party's victory in the 2014 Assembly elections, but was overlooked in favour of Fadnavis. While he was still trying to get over this slight, he was hurt again when Fadnavis ignored him for the post of his deputy. Khadse has since then tried to consolidate his position in the party. With important portfolios like minority development, excise, revenue, wakf, animal husbandry, dairy development and fisheries and agriculture, he is a force to be reckoned with.