Mumbai : The former union Cabinet Secretary and Congress nominee, Mr. R.D.Pradhan's defeat in the Rajya Sabha elections no doubt came like a bolt from the blue. It was, therefor, time to enforce accountability for cross-voting, The Congress high command swung into action. The then Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee president, Mr. Ranjit Deshmukh, quit the post and the veteran Gandhian leader, Mr. Pratap Rao Bhonsle, took over as MPCC chief. It was a daunting challenge for him as the Sena BJP alliance was in the saddle..
The Congress too later split with the former Chief Minister, Mr Sharad Pawar, walking out of the party to from the Nationalist Congress Party(NCP). But Bhonsle was determined to weather the storm under the dynamic stewardship of the Congress president, Mrs. Sonia Gandhi. He hopped from one station to another across the state to spread Mrs Gandhi's message that the party was committed to improving the lot of dalits, Muslims and other backward classes. It paid off.
Despite the so-called Sharad Pawar factor, the Congress romped home victorious. It secured 75 Assembly seats and 11 in the Lok Sabha- no mean achievement for the organisation which faced multi-cornered contests in the mid-term polls. Mr. Bhonsle gives Mrs Gandhi credit for the Congress victory in the state. "The people elected us because of our leader Soniaji. She had toured extensively in Maharashtra during the last Lok Sabha elections. The result is there for all to see," he says. The Congress forged an alliance with the NCP to from a new Government in the state, thus ending the saffron rule.
The MPCC president spoke on his party's agenda. Excerpts from an interview :.

Q : You had consistently opposed a tie-up with the NCP. Now there is a coalition Government beaded by the two parties?
A : Well, the Congress emerged as the largest single party after the Assembly elections in Maharashtra by winning 75 seats. It was incumbent on us to explore the possibilities of a secular government comprising other like-minded parties in the larger interests of the state. It is also public knowledge, that the Congress has been fighting communal, casteist, fascist forces tooth and nail over the years. Reckoned against this perceptive, our party preferred to enter into an understanding with the NCP to provide an alternative government in the State which had become bankrupt under BJP-Sena rule.

Q : You say Maharashtra is bankrupt, but the Sena-BJP combine says it is a blatant lie. What is the truth?
A : The plain truth is that Maharashtra, which was once upon a time No 1 State in country, has become absolutely bankrupt under the Sena-BJP rule. Its economy lies shattered. Loans from various agencies have gone up to an astronomical figure of Rs 40,000 crore. The payment of interests on such a huge amount has become an uphill task. Trade and commerce is also gone. The Sena-BJP Government indulged in rampant extortion, forcing prospective investors to flee maharashtra out of fear. As many as 500 farmers committed suicide during the saffron rule. Their promises to provide 27 lakh jobs to unemployed youth, 4000 free houses to slum dwellers remained on paper only.
No wonder, the erstwhile Sena-BJP Government scrapped some of its own schemes like junkawalker etc.

Q : Now that the Congress has taken over the reins, how do you look to future?
A : The Congress is committed to rebuilding Maharashtra. Under the dynamic stewardship of the Congress President, Mrs Sonia Gandhi, our party is determined to live up to the expectations of the people. A new young Chief Minister, Mr. Vilasrao Deshmukh, has taken over. Our Government is honestly earnest about putting the state back on the rails. No doubt there are challenges galore. But the Congress party is habituated to meeting such challenges head on. We have a history of an unblemished record of incessant public service. I am confident that Maharashtra will soon be back on the national map as a premier State known for its investor friendly atmosphere.

Q : Normally a change of Government entails a review of the previous regime's policies. What will be your party's stand?
A : In fact we have come to power to serve the people better. Our intentions are crystal clear. Good governance must be ensured at all costs. The Congress party has never become vindictive. We are having more serious problem to tackle on a top priority basis than indulge in political buffoonery with Sena-BJP. So far as policies of the erstwhile Government are concerned, we will not abandon the projects at random; only those programmes would be taken up which are beneficial for the common man. We have no time to settle political scores with the opposition.

Q: Given the past rift between the Congress and the NCP do you think the ties would stand the test of time?
A : Well past is past. Let bygones be bygones. Our basic understanding is to provide a clean and effective Government in the State to serve the people; to cement ties among the coalition partners. We have decided to form a coordination committee which will deliberate on the policies and priorities of the DF dispensation and monitor its day to day functioning. All the DF constituents agree that the damage caused by the misrule of communal forces should be undone. A fresh beginning be made to ensure all-round development. I am sure parochial interests would not come in the way of the smooth functioning of the Government. I am equally confident the Cong-NCP combine would deliver the goods to put Maharashtra back on the rails.

Q : What is your party's stand on the Srikrishna Commission report?
A : We have been insisting on the implementation of the Srikrishna Commission Report. It is not just to portray the Sena-BJP combine inpoor light. The Srikrishna report points out the people who played a reprehensible role in engineering the worst ever communal riots in Mumbai. Do not you think such people should be brought to book. Is it not fair that the guilty ought to be punished. We will go strictly by the due process of law. The Congress is duty bound to do justice to the minorities. That is why first step of our government was to revive the scrapped minorities Commission.

Q : Despite the split the Congress emerged as the single largest party, what do you think led to the party's success at the hustings?
A : It was primarily due to our president, Mrs Sonia Gandhi. Her charisma worked. She had made extensive tour across Maharashtra addressing a string of meetings in the areas dominated by the minorities, dalits, backward classes. The people at large responded to her call for a mandate to secular forces, without Mrs Gandhi's leadership, the Congress would not have won so many Assembly seats.

Q : What is your agenda on the organizational front?
A : In response to Mrs Sonia Gandhi's clarion call for consolidating the party apparatus, the MPCC is slated to take the plunge soon. Mrs Gandhi has already charted out the agenda. The Congress must be strengthened at the grassroots. As she has rightly pointed out the party draws its strength and sustenance from the grassroots. The MPCC has decided to strengthen its youth wing substantially. This will be in consonance with Mrs Gandhi's agenda to give youth greater representation in the party.

Q : Do you think the Cong-NCP led coalition government will be stable?
A : The Congress led Government is deeply entrenched in the saddle. There is no threat to the ruling coalition. Our party is committed to secularism and a sustained crusade against corruption. The alliance partners also stand by our commitment to these twin ideologies. The Congress party would capture power at the Centre under the leadership of Mrs Sonia Gandhi. She will give a new direction to the destiny of the country.