Focus on work, do not let media set agenda: Fadnavis at legislators' meet

After a war of words between the BJP and ally Shiv Sena over a newspaper advertisement, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis cautioned on Friday against deviating from agenda

After a war of words between the BJP and ally Shiv Sena over a newspaper advertisement, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis cautioned on Friday against deviating from the agenda of nation building.

Fadnavis was speaking at the inauguration of the first National Legislators Conference organised by the MIT-School of Governance and attended by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, presiding officers of assemblies and nearly 2,000 legislators from across the country.

"I have seen that often the media decides the agenda for us. We are so desperate to appear in the media that we forget our own agenda," he said amid a row over the newspaper advertisement that projected Chief Minister Eknath Shinde as a more popular leader in the state than his deputy.

Fadnavis urged the legislators attending the conference not to deviate from the agenda of law making and contributing to the progress of the nation.

He said democracy took root in India centuries ago and continues to thrive even today as a country of 140 crore people participate in free and fair elections to elect their representatives.

"Democracy is in the blood of every Indian, it reflects in our values. We can keep our small differences and work together for the common good," Fadnavis said.

He said democracy in India has in-built checks and balances and the legislative assemblies give voice to the last person in the queue and ensure that it reaches the executive.

Fadnavis urged the legislators to explore how the legislative assemblies and councils can work for more days in a year and desist from passing legislations without discussion.

Two days after the row over the controversial advertisement, Fadnavis and Shinde travelled together for a government function in Palghar district on Thursday.

Fadnavis said he shares a strong bond with Shinde, which is unshakeable.

"Yeh Fevicol ka jod hai, tutega nahi. No matter how hard you try," the deputy chief minister had said on Thursday, after skipping at least two functions with Shinde in two days after the controversial advertisement was released.