Thane city MLA Sanjay Kelkar eyes a hat-trick of wins in the upcoming elections

Contesting his third straight Vidhan Sabha elections from Thane city constituency, BJP Mahayuti candidate Sanjay Kelkar has left no stone unturned in his endeavour to strike a hat-trick of wins in this upcoming poll.

“The post of MLA is not a post of admiration. It is a post of sacrifice. It requires you to be minimalist as far as your lifestyle is concerned and most importantly strive to prioritise public interest. Being an MLA not only gives you the power to change the society but also bestows you with the responsibility to devote yourself to fulfil people’s need,” said Sanjay Kelkar, in a candid conversation with Nikhil Ballal, Managing Editor of Thanevaibhav.

 

Over the years you have earned the reputation of being an MLA who believes in simple living and high thinking. Do you think you will claim a hat-trick of wins this time?

Purely on the basis of development work done by me and the blessings, love, and support of the people of Thane, I am confident about the upcoming Vidhan Sabha election. I believe that diligent, intelligent, and well-aware Thanekars will definitely stand by me yet again and give me a third chance to serve them.

 

We have seen a plethora of political changes in the last two and a half years which have not gone down too well with the voters. How do you still convince them to believe in the process of elections?

We (BJP) are a national party and the political changes that you have seen over the course of last two and a half years have been a part of the top-level strategy. However, coming down to the local level, I believe in solving problems by encouraging people’s participation. I engage in regular dialogues with the people in question and ensure that their problems are met with solutions. Those who have benefitted from my interactions and intervention will agree with me. Besides, in my previous two tenures as an MLA, I have undertaken many social initiatives aimed at betterment and upliftment of society.

 

Tell us about your work done as an MLA.

I have had 100% attendance in the assembly meetings where issues of public are discussed. In those meetings, I have not only raised people’s concerns but also ensured that I follow up to reach the end result. For instance, I had proposed widening of Kopri bridge in 2012 and today it has attained fruition. For that, I had started a movement through people’s participation on the streets. Later, I was in constant touch with departments like Railways, Public Works, and MMRDA. The then Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis also approved a funding of ₹100 crores for the same. Now as we all know this bridge is of eight lanes.

Besides, the problem of water shortage was also solved by reaching out to the concerned departments. With the help of people, we undertook protests and blocked the roads to make ourselves heard. Our voices garnered the attention as an additional 50 MLD of water was supplied from then.

With respect to transportation, efforts were made to incorporate 100 electric buses into the public transport system. The Metro project worth ₹10,000 crores also received approval. The recent exemption of toll for Mumbai entry points has been the result of our efforts.

Given the rising numbers of old buildings, the process of redevelopment has been fast tracked. The structures which are more than 50 years old will undergo redevelopment soon. Additionally, I successfully pursued the exclusion of in-process SRA projects and official buildings from the cluster scheme. This has given relief to lakhs of citizens. My pursuit also led to the abolition of non-agricultural tax, which has benefited numerous citizens across Maharashtra.

Additionally, the issue of drainage is gruelling in Thane city. Under my aegis, we implemented the first-ever “Adarsh ​​Nale (नाले) Construction and Adoption Scheme” in Thane city. Without taking a single penny from the municipal corporation, through people’s participation alone, we imparted training on how to build and clean the drainage systems. Moreover, 750 societies were given trolleys for storing wet and dry waste. We also provided benches and set up open gyms from the MLA fund.

With regards to economic empowerment of women, we established Mahila Vikas Parivar. Through that, we have already provided employment to hundreds of women in self-help groups. Like “Ladki Bahin Yojana,” we had already introduced “Jan Kalyan Card Yojana” for women from different sections of society. Through this scheme, women receive discounts from 15 to 50% on purchases from 85 listed shops. More than 10,000 women have benefitted. We have also offered subsidy worth ₹10,000 to domestic women workers.

Aadhaar card camp for citizens, e-Shram card for workers, Ayushman Yojana card camps bearing medical expenses up to ₹5 lakhs were also implemented.

As we know, Thane is not only a city of high-rise buildings but also a place of historic importance. In view of this, I constantly insist to preserve the city’s history. For example, Constitution Square was created by re-erecting the Ashoka Pillar near Thane Court. The old town hall was renovated too. Thane Central Jail, which has historic significance since independence, has been well-preserved. Also, the engine of the first-ever train that ran from Mumbai to Thane has been installed in Thane station area and that area has also been beautified. I am also the working president of Sahyadri Pratishthan, which conserves the forts of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and we have successfully completed many conservation works.

In education space, I have used my MLA funds for digitisation of municipality and aided schools in Thane city. During Covid-19, we conducted practice tests for students, and gave free mobile internet packages and free educational apps to students hailing from humble financial backgrounds. Four schools including Shreerang Vidyalaya were facing water problem. By providing bore wells to those schools, water problem of about 25,000 students was solved. Apart from this, being the founder of Primary Teachers Council, I have addressed teachers’ concerns.

As we all know, this year, we had the grand launch of Namo Park. Hon’ble Chief Minister Eknath Shinde accepted my demand to name this park in respect of our Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi.

Further, cognisant of the fact that a newspaper vendor is an unorganised worker, I demanded that a welfare board be set up in this vein. The recent establishment of this board has brought relief to lakhs of newspaper vendors in Maharashtra, making it the first-ever state of the country to have such a body. I work as a consultant to the National Newspaper Vendors Association.

In the cultural domain, I have been at the helm of organising lectures in memory of Late Rambhau Mhalgi for more than three and a half decades. One act play competitions are also conducted to provide a platform to the budding actors. In sports, we organise NT Kelkar inter-school cricket tournament, which to date has produced many professional cricketers.

Last but not least, every year we host the Mango Festival that benefits farmers and Thanekars. These are just a few examples of my works over the years as an MLA.

 

In the 2019 Vidhan Sabha elections, when BJP and Shiv Sena fought together, you won with a decent margin. Now with NCP Ajit Pawar faction and Shiv Sena’s split faction of Eknath Shinde with BJP in the Mahayuti, how do you see this election?

In 2014 elections, there was no BJP-Shiv Sena alliance. All parties were fighting separately. Interestingly, the Thane city constituency did not have a BJP MLA in the last 30 years and there were only three BJP corporators in this constituency. So, no one believed that BJP could win this seat in Vidhan Sabha. But BJP won. I won.

Then, in 2019, BJP formed an alliance with Shiv Sena. But there were candidates from MNS, and Congress and NCP. So that election was not easy either. But still I won with a margin of about 20,000 votes.

Now we are heading into the 2024 elections. On one side there is Maha Vikas Aghadi and on the other side is our Mahayuti. I am of the opinion that voting is based on how the person is, and what he has done. People vote for the person and not for the party, I feel.

Honestly, there was no reason why a teacher’s son like me should have entered politics. But over the years the kind of support people have shown me gives me a sense of satisfaction.

I have never claimed that I will win by a thumping margin of three to four lakh votes. I have just shared my progress report with people and I want them to decide what is best for them.

 

Elections are just a stone’s throw away. But you look quite relaxed. How has your campaign been?

Since I believe in, not fighting the elections but fighting for people’s interests, I don’t feel stressed. Whether or not I get elected, I know I will continue doing what I have been doing for people’s good. When my candidature was announced, within two days the BJP army had hit the streets and reached out to 30,000 houses. People have been kind enough to bless me. I strongly believe that the success achieved in Thane Lok Sabha this year will be repeated in the Vidhan Sabha election.