If you have been following the political events in Maharashtra State over the past few weeks, it’s inevitable that you would have had more than a few laughs. The state legislators not just crossed the floor (as in Goa and elsewhere), they hijacked an entire political party.
There’s one more laugh you can have with the latest news that happened today related to that same set of events. The Shinde faction of the Shiv Sena party or should I say the new Shiv Sena party that tore itself away from the Uddhav Thackeray faction, formed its first cabinet, with 18 ministers. While several quarters grumbled about corrupt politicians inducted into that cabinet, the NCP (one of the parties who formed the previous government which Shinde brought down with the help of the BJP, put an actual number to it. They said 17 of the 18 cabinet ministers are corrupt. Not unbelievable, given their declared assets published in the media. The notorious builder Lodha, one of India’s richest developers is in the cabinet too. It’s like putting Nirav Modi, a crook, in charge of a government bank. If that doesn’t get you laughing and crying, nothing else will. Roland. Toronto.
