Chhagan Bhujbal
Chhagan Bhujbal (born 15 October 1947)[1] is an Indian politician from Maharashtra, who is the member of current Government of Maharashtra, headed by Devendra Fadnavis. Currently he is a member of 15th Legislative Assembly of Maharashtra from Yeola Assembly. He also served as the Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra from 1999–December 2003 and 2009–2010.[2][3][4] He earlier also served as Minister of Public Works Department and Minister of Home Affairs in Government of Maharashtra.
Political career
[edit]Before entering politics, Bhujbal was a vegetable vendor in Byculla Market where his mother had a small fruit shop.He started his political career with Shiv Sena in the 1960s. After being inspired by Shiv Sena philosophy of Balasaheb Thackeray, Bhujbal evolved into a hardcore Shiv Sainik. He was amongst initial members of the Shiv Sena.During his work as Corporator for the Mumbai corporation, Bhujbal maintained consistent contact, communication with rank and file of his constituency and its neighbourhood. Later, he was elected as Mayor of Mumbai twice. He was among the earliest MLAs of Shiv Sena elected from Mazgaon first in 1985 and again in 1990.[5]
He left Shiv Sena in 1991 and joined the Indian National Congress. Later, after the Indian National Congress leader Sharad Pawar decided to split from the Congress and form his own party, the Nationalist Congress Party, Bhujbal went along with him.[6] Bhujbal contested 2014 General Elections from Nashik Constituency and lost the race to Hemant Godse from Shiv Sena.[7]
Bhujbal is currently Member of Legislative Assembly from Yeola Constituency and has been incumbent since 2004.[8][9][10]
Bhujbal belongs to an OBC community.[11] He shares strong ties with Bihar politician Upendra Kushwaha. On various occasions, Kushwaha has spoken to media that he considers Bhujbal as well as Sharad Pawar as his mentor and relies on them for his political decisions.[12]
Early life and studies
[edit]Chhagan Bhujbal was born into a poor family in Nashik. He pursued his secondary and higher secondary education at Elphinstone Technical High School in Mumbai. Later, he obtained a diploma in Mechanical Engineering from VJTI, Mumbai. From a young age, he actively participated in agriculture and agriculture-related businesses while developing a strong interest in social and political affairs in the state.[13]
Private life
[edit]He is fluent in Hindi, Marathi, and English. He is married to Mrs. Meena Bhujbal, and they have one child. His son, Pankaj Bhujbal, is a member of the Maharashtra Legislative Council.[14]
Enforcement Directorate proceedings
[edit]In December 2017, Enforcement Directorate attached assets worth 20.41 crore rupees belonging to the Bhujbal family under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.[15]
Criticism
[edit]Allegations of deteriorating law and order situation in Nashik
[edit]Nashik known to be a peaceful district, where law and order situation has collapsed under Bhujbals' political clout. It is witnessing recession in all sectors. Daylight robberies, armed attacks, chain-snatchings and setting of two- and four-wheelers on fire have become routine.[16]
In view of the criticism of the home department, chief minister Prithviraj Chavan sent police commissioner Vinod Lokhande on leave for his dismal performance, while Samir Bhujbal demanded a CID probe into the collapse of law and order. But a senior Indian Police Service (IPS) official said that when each and every police official has been appointed on the family's recommendations, why should the home department be blamed? Chhagan Bhujbal must accept responsibility and initiate measures to restore the people's confidence.[16]
Alleged misuse and mismanagement of trust property
[edit]In 2012, Mumbai Educational Trust (MET) filed a criminal complaint against Chhagan Bhujbal, alleging misuse and mismanagement of trust property for family-run furniture business and destruction of evidence in connection.[17]
Attack on Alpha Marathi
[edit]On 23 Dec 2003, Chhagan Bhujbal resigned from the post of Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra, owning the moral responsibility of attack on Alpha Marathi office in Andheri, Mumbai. A group of workers belonging to the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) attacked the office of Alpha Marathi, which belongs to the Zee group. They were upset with the channel for airing a satire on Bhujbal's alleged role in the multi-crore fake stamp paper scam. NCP president Sharad Pawar told the media on Tuesday night that Bhujbal had sought his permission to resign on moral grounds. Chhagan Bhujbal handed over his resignation to then Chief Minister of Maharashtra Sushilkumar Shinde.[18][19]
References
[edit]- ^ "Telgi scam: CBI grills Bhujbal". The Times of India. 4 January 2005. Retrieved 26 October 2010.
- ^ "Chhagan Bhujbal :Son - Pankaj Bhujbal Chhagan Bhujbal The Prominent Deputy Chief Minister of Maharastra". Chhagan Bhujbal : Chhagan Bhujbal The Prominent Deputy Chief Minister of Maharastra. Retrieved 30 May 2018.
- ^ Official WebSite of Nashik District Archived 15 September 2011 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "The fall and fall of Chhagan Bhujbal: The seven people who brought the NCP strongman down". Firstpost.com. 16 March 2016. Retrieved 30 May 2018.
- ^ "Chhagan Bhujbal: How Shiv Sena's original rebel turned a corner". India Today. 5 July 2023. Retrieved 7 September 2024.
- ^ "Maharashtra: NCP missed Bhujbal's leadership, says Ajit Pawar". freepressjournal.in. 5 May 2018. Retrieved 31 May 2018.
- ^ "2014 Nashik Lok Sabha Constituency Results". January 2020.
- ^ "Maharashtra Assembly Election 2009 -Results" (PDF). Chief Electoral Officer, Maharashtra website. Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 November 2009. Retrieved 30 September 2010.
- ^ महाराष्ट्र विधानसभा सािवविक वनिडणूक 2014 (PDF) (in Hindi). Chief Electoral Officer, Maharashtra website. January 2020.
- ^ "Schedule to Commission's Notification No. 308/MT-LA/2019" (PDF). Chief Electoral Officer, Maharashtra website. January 2020.
- ^ "Chhagan Bhujbal - The OBC Leader". Business Standard. Retrieved 29 November 2019.
- ^ "Kushwaha meets Bhujbal in Pune hints at joining Mahagathbandhan". Hindustan Times. Retrieved 11 September 2024.
- ^ "Chhagan Bhujbal: A street-smart champion of words and actions". Deccan Herald. Retrieved 5 February 2025.
- ^ Deshpande, Abhinay (15 October 2024). "Seven Maharashtra MLCs sworn in, hours before EC announcement of Assembly polls". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 5 February 2025.
- ^ "ED attaches Rs 20 crore assets in Chhagan Bhujbal PMLA case". January 2020.
- ^ a b "Bhujbals or cop chief to blame for Nashik woes?". The Times of India. 31 January 2012. Archived from the original on 3 January 2013.
- ^ "Bhujbal accused of 'destroying evidence'". The Times of India. 4 February 2012. Archived from the original on 1 July 2012. Retrieved 4 February 2012.
- ^ "NCP activists attack Zee TV office; Bhujbal resigns". The Hindu. Chennai, India. 24 December 2003. Archived from the original on 22 April 2004.
- ^ "Bhujbal quits after TV office attack". The Times of India. 24 December 2003. Archived from the original on 7 July 2012.
- 1947 births
- Living people
- 20th-century mayors of places in India
- Mayors of Mumbai
- Deputy chief ministers of Maharashtra
- People from Nashik
- Marathi politicians
- Nationalist Congress Party politicians from Maharashtra
- Shiv Sena politicians
- Indian National Congress politicians
- Maharashtra MLAs 1985–1990
- Maharashtra MLAs 1990–1995
- Maharashtra MLAs 2004–2009
- Maharashtra MLAs 2009–2014
- State cabinet ministers of Maharashtra
- United Progressive Alliance candidates in the 2014 Indian general election
- Leaders of the Opposition in the Maharashtra Legislative Council
- Maharashtra MLAs 2014–2019
- Maharashtra MLAs 2024–2029
- Corruption in Maharashtra
- Indian prisoners and detainees