Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis dismissed allegations of Opposition parties of rising inflation and unemployment in the country and said that it has now become a fashion to speak about them.

In an interview with ANI Editor Smita Prakash on June 29 before the split in the Nationalist Congress Party, Fadnavis said, “It has become a fashion now to speak about inflation and unemployment. It is true that during the times of Covid or during some international crisis, inflation soars for some time but then things come back to normal. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s work on inflation management is serving as a model throughout the world.” Lauding India’s success story in controlling inflation, the Deputy Chief Minister said, “Ours is the only country that has managed to control inflation after Covid. We are not saying that everything has become cheap now. But when the world is tackling inflation, India has been able to manage it well.”

Speaking exclusively to ANI on the number of jobs being provided by Maharashtra government, Fadnavis said that the state may cross giving 100,000 jobs.

“Though we have said that we will be giving 75,000 jobs in Maharashtra, it looks like we may cross 100,000. We have already given five to six thousand jobs. The process is on to give 18,000 jobs. We will be doing that,” he said.
Highlighting the immense potential of Maharashtra in creating employment opportunities, Fadnavis said, “In Maharashtra, the service sector is growing in a huge way. Maharashtra has always been an industrial hub. We create a lot of employment here in the private sector.”

Maharashtra is the top state when it comes to the highest number of accounts opened under the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) in the last five years, the Deputy Chief Minister said pointing out that this is the biggest indicator of the large number of jobs being created in the state.

“The biggest indicator of job creation is the EPFO accounts. The highest number of EPFO accounts have been opened in Maharashtra in the last 5 years and these accounts are functional. This means that people are employed.”

Another indicator of job creation in the state is the loans taken by people under the Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana, Fadnavis said adding that 41 lakh persons have taken loans under this scheme.

“Under the PM Mudra Yojana, 41 lakh have got loans. This means they are doing some business or engaged in some kind of employment. Hence this rhetoric that there are no jobs in Maharashtra is false,” he said.

Speaking about Prime Minister Narendra Modi extending the subsidy on urea for three years, the Deputy Chief Minister said that the government steps in to control prices when it is needed.

“PM Modi has extended the subsidy on urea for three years. Owing to the Ukraine-Russia crisis, urea prices have increased three times in the international market. Despite that, this step was taken for the farmers. It will cost 3.5 lakh crore. But whenever necessary our government steps up.”

Speaking on intolerance and the rising boycott culture against some Bollywood films, Fadnavis said, “At times this happens due to organic reasons or may be due to competition. People get an idea about some film in their minds and then it takes the form of protest. The social media community organically creates an environment to back it up.” On regulating such virtual hatred, he said that the government is not in a position to regulate social media.

However, Fadnavis assured that every film that has got a certificate from the Central Board of Film Certification should be allowed to screen. “We will ensure that every film that has got the certificate from the censor board should be allowed to screen and no one should be allowed to prevent its screening,” Fadnavis said.

On the bonhomie shared by Union Minister Nitin Gadkari and himself, as both belong to Nagpur, Fadnavis said, “I am an MLA and he is an MP. He works in the Centre and I work in the state. But Nagpur is a changed city now because we have worked together for it. Nagpur comes first in both of our minds.”

However, Fadnavis said that both the leaders are not on the same page on all occasions. This is because of change in their behaviour and attitude.

“It is not necessary that we will be on the same page on all occasions because there is difference in our behavior and attitude. While Gadkari ji is upfront, I am a bit measured. So there is a difference.”

On the Bharatiya Janata Party’s performance in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls, Fadnavis said that the party will not have less than 42 seats in the upcoming polls. “We had 42 both times. We won’t come down from there,” he said.

On his change in role ahead of the upcoming elections he said, “In Lok Sabha there is only one leader who is PM Modi. So whether I am CM or Deputy CM it does not matter. Our work is only limited to not being complacent and not to take people for granted.”

Spilling the beans on his plans after the 2024 polls, the Maharashtra politician said that he wants to stay in his home state. “I want to stay in Maharashtra because I practise politics here. However, the school from where I come from, we do not decide for ourselves. Our elders decide what is best for us. So they will decide where I should be working.”

On the recent change in guard in Maharashtra which led to the BJP government coming back to power in the state with the Shiv Sena (now with the Nationalist Congress Party as well), Fadnavis said, “I am not Chanakya. However, if someone betrays me I wait for my time to come.”

Speaking about his journey about entering politics, Fadnavis said, “I did not want to come into politics. I wanted to be a lawyer. But I participated in every protest. Before the final year the leader in my Vidyarthi Parishad told me that I have to join the BJP. He convinced me by saying that the ideology we follow is that our seniors decide for us what is best for us.”

On maintaining work-life balance, the busy politician said that he has not done a good job so far. “I believe work-life balance is very important but my life is not balanced. I do not give enough time to my wife and daughter. But she does not complain much.” However, he said that with PM Modi working round the clock, he feels guilty about taking a break.

Talking about mental health, he said that he keeps himself calm by ‘cultivating patience’. “I lose patience sometimes, it happens to everyone. But the kind of pressure we face, it has taught us to be tolerant.”

Rubbishing Opposition’s claim that there would be no space for democracy after 2024 if BJP comes to power in the Center again, he said, “Democracy is so deep-rooted in the country that it cannot be shaken. Indira Gandhi had tried to shackle it earlier but to no avail. People chose democracy and ousted her.”

Cautioning about a growing trend in Opposition parties to undermine the judiciary, he said, “There has been a consistent effort along the opposition parties to undermine the judiciary. Judges are humans as well. So they are under pressure to play a balancing act. But there is an ongoing process to undermine people’s belief in the judiciary.”