Following the collapse of an under construction Metro station stairway in Andheri last month, home minister R.R. Patil’s statement that the MMRDA should come up with a whitepaper had created a flutter, but the NCP on Thursday made it clear that it does not believe in whitepapers altogether.
The home minister’s call for a whitepaper by an authority that is directly overlooked by the chief minister had raised many eyebrows and was being considered by many as the NCP’s retaliatory move for when irrigation minister Sunil Tatkare was forced into a corner by the CM.
However, in a press conference, the party spokesperson dismissed the idea of a whitepaper being demanded from the MMRDA. “The NCP has not demanded any whitepaper on any subject,” said NCP spokesperson Nawab Malik. He added that it was an issue that needs to be discussed in the state cabinet. He added that all details about the MMRDA’s work were available on the development authority’s website.
The newly-appointed spokesperson further said that as the CM had made a commitment on the floor of the House to come up with a whitepaper on irrigation, it would be presented. However, he added that though the NCP was not scared of any whitepaper, it doesn’t believe in whitepapers.