"Uddhav Thackeray and Gandhi family not special": Piyush Goyal on bag check controversy
"Everyone's bags are checked. Devendra Fadnavis's bag was checked on November 5, but we did not make it an issue. Whenever we travel in our car, the police checks us at check posts etc. This is the job of the Election Commission and the police; they do their job," Goyal said.
ANI
Nov 13, 2024 23:57 IST
Pune (Maharashtra) [India], November 13 (ANI): Union Minister Piyush Goyal, taking a dig at opposition, said that Uddhav Thackeray and the Gandhi family are not "special" as everyone's bag are checked by Election Commission officials.
Piyush Goyal remarks came after Uddhav Thackeray expressed anger over the checking of his bags and asked whether the ECI officials checked the bags of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Devendra Fadnavis and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Ajit Pawar.
Piyush Goyal informed that the bag of Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis was checked on November 5. He said that Election Commission is "doing their job".
"Everyone's bags are checked. Devendra Fadnavis's bag was checked on November 5, but we did not make it an issue. Whenever we travel in our car, the police checks us at check posts etc. This is the job of the Election Commission and the police; they do their job, but such a cheap statement," Goyal said.
"I feel that there is something wrong in their hearts or they are afraid of getting caught, due to which Uddhav Thackeray ji is facing so much trouble. If all of us common people can be checked, then Uddhav Thackeray ji and the Gandhi family are not anything special, right?" Goyal added.
Earlier in the day, CM Eknath Shinde's luggage was also checked on Wednesday at Palghar Police ground helipad as part of Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs).
Eknath Shinde arrived in Palghar for an Assembly election campaign where ECI officials, as a security precaution, checked CM's bags and helicopter after it landed.
Along with Uddhav Thackeray, Nationalist Congress Party - Sharadchandra Pawar (NCP-SP) leader Supriya Sule also expressed her displeasure over the bag checking incident and called it "dirty politics."
Supriya Sule said Thackeray's bags were checked twice, while the bags of politicians in power were not checked like this.
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Sule said, "How is it possible that only opposition leaders' bags are checked? Uddhav Thackeray's bags were checked twice. No checking of the leaders in power is done. Such dirty politics is being done in Maharashtra."
However, sources in the Election Commission clarified that enforcement agencies are strictly following SOPs to maintain a level playing field. (ANI)
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