The political battle in Maharashtra has now come to the food bill. The ongoing political tussle between Uddhav Thackeray and Eknath Shinde has now become the center of debate over the monthly food bill at the chief minister’s residence.
In fact, under CM Eknath Shinde’s leadership, the Chief Minister’s residence has spent Rs. 2 crore 38 lakh on food and beverages in the past four months alone. Shockingly, a staggering amount of over 91 thousand rupees was spent solely on tea. This information was made public through an RTI query. Following this revelation, Uddhav Thackeray has taken aim at Eknath Shinde.
Nitin Yadav, a Baramati resident, filed an RTI seeking details of the expenses related to the’ Varsha’ bungalow. The response revealed that the food expenses for the last four months amounted to Rs. 2 crore 38 lakh, with a staggering amount of Rs. 91,500 spent on tea alone.
Expressing his astonishment, Nitin Yadav has raised a question about what kind of food and drinks are being consumed at the Varsha Bungalow that warrants such excessive expenditure.
Following the revelation, Ajit Pawar has launched a direct attack on Eknath Shinde, questioning whether the food and drinks being consumed are made of gold. He further added that he cannot comprehend the exorbitant expenses, saying that he does not know what Eknath Shinde eats or drinks.
In response, Eknath Shinde justified the expenses, stating that Varsha Bungalow receives a high volume of visitors every day. He added that during his predecessor’s tenure, the bungalow was not accessible to the public for two years, which may have saved expenses. He further questioned whether the visitors to the bungalow should not be offered basic hospitality such as tea and water.