On Khadse's plan of returning to BJP, Mahajan calls him 'extinguished lamp'

Maharashtra BJP leader Girish Mahajan on Sunday termed his former colleague Eknath Khadse an "extinguished lamp".

The comment comes amid Khadse's announcement that he would be going back to the BJP, which he had quit in 2020 before joining the undivided Nationalist Congress Party.

Khadse chose to side with Sharad Pawar when the NCP split in July last year after Ajit Pawar and eight MLAs joined the Eknath Shinde government. "He is like an extinguished lamp. Even a gram panchayat is not in his hand. He used to control a bank, but the board of directors has also changed, and new board members do not listen to him.

Why make his decision so important?" Mahajan told reporters. His wife and daughter have lost elections in the past, said Mahajan, who has been Khadse's arch-rival in Jalgaon district. Incidentally, Khadse, who was leader of opposition in the Assembly between 2009 and 2014, was a contender for the post of chief minister when the BJP won 120-odd seats in the 2014 Assembly polls.

However, he was beaten to the top post by Devendra Fadnavis. Khadse had to be content with some important portfolios but was made to resign from the Fadnavis ministry in 2016 after he faced allegations of irregularities in a land deal.

His daughter Rohini Khadse was given a ticket by the BJP in the 2019 Assembly polls from Muktainagar but she was defeated by Independent candidate Chandrakant Nimba Patil. Eknath Khadse had at the time blamed BJP leaders for the defeat.

MLA Patil said he has extended support to the NDA but added he would be able to comment only once Khadse joins the BJP officially. Meanwhile, Rohini Khadse, in a post on X earlier in the day, said she would not follow her father into the BJP and would remain with the NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar). Khadse's daughter-in-law Raksha Khadse remains BJP Lok Sabha MP from Raver since 2014.