MNS chief Raj Thackeray said he will meet CM Eknath Shinde in the coming days and discuss the issue with him. (File Image)
MNS chief Raj Thackeray said at a press conference in Mumbai today that his party workers will burn toll plazas if the government does not repair roads. He said MNS has been protesting silently about the issue but not anymore
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray has warned the Mahayuti government (consisting of BJP, Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena and Ajit Pawar’s NCP faction) to repair Mumbai roads or else face the wrath of his party workers who will burn down all toll plazas.
Raj Thackeray’s ultimatum comes at a time when the people of the state are frustrated with bad conditions of roads, which have increased their travel time and other related problems.
The Opposition parties have been cornering the government over the pathetic conditions of motorable roads.
Thackeray also showed media on Monday the statements of late BJP leader Gopinath Munde, Deputy Chief Ministers Ajit Pawar and Devendra Fadnavis and former Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on toll-free roads.
“What happens to the toll money ultimately? How are the same companies getting the toll continuously?” asked Raj Thackeray at the presser in Mumbai.
For the past few weeks, MNS has had silent protests at toll plaza on city borders, but the state government had not taken any cognisance. Therefore, today’s MNS press conference pressed the civic issues, and threatened the state government of strict action over non-compliance.
The MNS chief also said he will be meeting the CM in the coming days, and will raise the issue with him.
Meanwhile, senior Congress leader Balasaheb Thorat targeted the state government over the same issue in Nasik today, and said, “All major roads in the state have potholes. It has become risky to drive the vehicle on these roads. If this government does not want to fix these potholes and make road conditions better, then why are they collecting the toll? This triple-engine government has made Maharashtra miserable”.
Thorat raked up the issue of traffic jams and potholes on the Mumbai-Nasik highway again after the last assembly session. “The condition of Mumbai-Nasik highway is so bad that for 2.5 hours’ journey, it takes 4 hours. Traffic is stuck for an hour. Bottleneck near Bhiwandi, on the same highway, creates more havoc. If you travel on this road, it becomes difficult to identify where is the road and where is the pothole. Despite all, no-one from the state government is talking about the potholes on this road but regular toll collection is underway. Five major highways of the state have similar conditions.”
He also dared the people in power to use the highway to understand the plight of the common man.
