Pune: Party members of NCP (SP) and Congress have accused the BJP of erasing its own legacy and lowering the standards of the ongoing campaign for the 29 municipal corporations across the state by targeting deceased politicians like Vilasrao Deshmukh and Shankarrao Chavan.Working president of NCP (SP) Supriya Sule on Monday campaigned for candidates in the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC), where her party is in an alliance with her estranged cousin Ajit Pawar’s NCP. During an interaction with reporters, Sule criticised BJP for making statements aimed at senior Congress members Deshmukh and Chavan.During a rally in Latur — the home district of the Deshmukh family — BJP state chief Ravindra Chavan said the leader’s memories will be erased from Latur. Later, he tendered an apology. In a rally in Nanded — the home district of the Chavan family — chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, without taking Chavan’s name, said politicians of previous regimes from the district had failed to ensure development. Incidentally, Fadnavis made the statement in the presence of Shankarrao Chavan’s son and former chief minister Ashok Chavan, who has switched from Congress to BJP.Sule remarked on the two two statements. She said, “It is unfortunate that the BJP has targeted deceased Congress members during its campaign. The Deshmukh family showed decency while responding to the criticism against Vilasrao Deshmukh. However, it was quite shocking that Ashok Chavan did not react to the barbs against his own father.”Meanwhile, Congress has also accused BJP of stooping very low during the campaign. State Congress chief Harshwardhan Sapkal said, “Today BJP has targeted Deshmukh and Chavan, but their actual target is different. The present leadership of BJP wants to erase the legacy of Pramod Mahajan and Gopinath Munde. The earlier leaders of the party never indulged in such language against the opposition.”The opposition claimed that BJP has changed as a party over the years. Sule said, “There is a vast difference between the original BJP and the current leadership of that party. Earlier, BJP could proudly claim it was a party with a difference, now it ignores its own loyalists. Former cabinet minister and senior BJP member Prakash Javadekar would be at the forefront of any election earlier, but he has been sidelined now.“
