MUMBAI: NCP leader R R Patil, the man behind the ban on Mumbai's dance bars whose political career was marked by a series of controversies, died on Monday after a prolonged battle with oral cancer. He was 58.
A trusted aide of Sharad Pawar and a posterboy of the NCP, Patil, popularly known as Aba, had to quit as deputy chief minister and home minister in 2008 after his controversial remark in the wake of the 26/11 terror attacks that "such small incidents take place in big cities". Patil maintained he had never made such a statement and that he had been quoted out of context, but that did not help him retain his place in the cabinet.
From being a member of the Sangli zilla parishad, Patil rose to become deputy CM of Maharashtra. A lawyer by profession, the soft-spoken Patil was first elected to the zilla parishad in 1979 and had two terms as ZP member. In 1980, he was first elected to the legislative assembly from the Tasgaon constituency. There was no looking back after that, as he was elected to the lower house for six consecutive terms.
During the 2014 assembly polls, BJP mobilized Patil's rivals within the NCP to ensure his defeat, but did not succeed though election rallies against him were addressed by PM Narendra Modi and union minister Nitin Gadkari. BJP ensured the defection of senior NCP leaders a few days before polls, but the strategy did not work as R R defeated BJP nominee Ajit Ghorpade by a record margin.
As a grassroots-level activist, Patil first shot into the limelight in 1975 when he constructed a hostel for girls in Tasgaon and resolved the drinking water problem in 40 villages in the drought-prone areas of Sangli district. Though elected to the assembly as a Congress nominee, in 1999, he quit the party and joined the Sharad Pawar-led NCP. In the Congress-NCP coalition government, Patil was inducted into the cabinet and allotted the rural development and water supply departments. As rural development minister, he launched a state-wide cleanliness drive. In 2003, he was entrusted with the crucial home portfolio. In 2004, he was made deputy CM but quit in 2008. After the 2009 assembly polls, he was re-inducted into the cabinet and given the home department, but Ajit Pawar then became deputy CM. In his role as home minister, Patil took the decision to ban Mumbai's dance bars though there was opposition to the move from within the NCP. In fact, the then governor had declined to promulgate an ordinance for the purpose. The governor's contention was that since it was an important proposal, it should be discussed in the state legislature. Ultimately, both houses of the state legislature passed the ordinance; later, the legislation was set aside. Patil also took over as guardian minister of Naxal-infested Gachiroli and was present always to unfurl the tricolor in the district on both Republic Day and Independence Day.
Significantly, Patil was at loggerheads with the then CM Prithviraj Chavan over postings and transfer of IPS officials; as a result, transfer and postings of key IPS officials, including the Mumbai police commissioner, were delayed by over a year.
A trusted aide of Sharad Pawar and a posterboy of the NCP, Patil, popularly known as Aba, had to quit as deputy chief minister and home minister in 2008 after his controversial remark in the wake of the 26/11 terror attacks that "such small incidents take place in big cities". Patil maintained he had never made such a statement and that he had been quoted out of context, but that did not help him retain his place in the cabinet.
From being a member of the Sangli zilla parishad, Patil rose to become deputy CM of Maharashtra. A lawyer by profession, the soft-spoken Patil was first elected to the zilla parishad in 1979 and had two terms as ZP member. In 1980, he was first elected to the legislative assembly from the Tasgaon constituency. There was no looking back after that, as he was elected to the lower house for six consecutive terms.
During the 2014 assembly polls, BJP mobilized Patil's rivals within the NCP to ensure his defeat, but did not succeed though election rallies against him were addressed by PM Narendra Modi and union minister Nitin Gadkari. BJP ensured the defection of senior NCP leaders a few days before polls, but the strategy did not work as R R defeated BJP nominee Ajit Ghorpade by a record margin.
As a grassroots-level activist, Patil first shot into the limelight in 1975 when he constructed a hostel for girls in Tasgaon and resolved the drinking water problem in 40 villages in the drought-prone areas of Sangli district. Though elected to the assembly as a Congress nominee, in 1999, he quit the party and joined the Sharad Pawar-led NCP. In the Congress-NCP coalition government, Patil was inducted into the cabinet and allotted the rural development and water supply departments. As rural development minister, he launched a state-wide cleanliness drive. In 2003, he was entrusted with the crucial home portfolio. In 2004, he was made deputy CM but quit in 2008. After the 2009 assembly polls, he was re-inducted into the cabinet and given the home department, but Ajit Pawar then became deputy CM. In his role as home minister, Patil took the decision to ban Mumbai's dance bars though there was opposition to the move from within the NCP. In fact, the then governor had declined to promulgate an ordinance for the purpose. The governor's contention was that since it was an important proposal, it should be discussed in the state legislature. Ultimately, both houses of the state legislature passed the ordinance; later, the legislation was set aside. Patil also took over as guardian minister of Naxal-infested Gachiroli and was present always to unfurl the tricolor in the district on both Republic Day and Independence Day.
Significantly, Patil was at loggerheads with the then CM Prithviraj Chavan over postings and transfer of IPS officials; as a result, transfer and postings of key IPS officials, including the Mumbai police commissioner, were delayed by over a year.
ALL CREDITS:- http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com
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