Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray’s demand for autonomy for Maharashtra will raise eyebrows as it zeroes in on special powers to decide on matters of foreign trade.

The demand for special powers in the matter of foreign trade is explained in the party’s blueprint as being akin to the special status granted to Jammu & Kashmir through Article 370 of the constitution.

It talks about establishing what it calls the Maharashtra State Internal and World Trade Organisation in trade matters and seeks a change in the federal structure to allow more powers in other matters ranging from disinvestment and privatization of public sector enterprises to transport and planning.

“After 67 years of independence, each state must have the right to decide how it wants to develop. It’s not we alone who are demanding more freedom to states. Gujarat has begun to take over some rights and opportunities itself by directly signing international pacts for projects… Kerala has also established a corporation for speedy rail services,” the blueprint document states.

One of the proposals is setting up a stock exchange for the state. Another is privatization of Mumbai Port Trust and Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust.

It’s apparent that the autonomy proposal is a reaction to the slowdown of development in what is one of the better-off states.

“To do away with the regional imbalance in the state, economic planning must be decentralized, separated from the central government,” the document states. It proposes “sub-national diplomacy” to allow each district to work out its international trade policy, enabling them to to market their produce without interference from the Centre and a little help from the state.

“Like J&K, which has been given special status under Article 370, Maharashtra must negotiate with the Centre for rights to take decisions regarding foreign trade,” the blueprint states.

It wants subjects like inter-state migration, railways, inland waterways, posts & telegraphs, inter-state trade and commerce, minerals to be put on the concurrent list.

It has also sought a new local list that will include health and sanitation, municipal tramways, irrigation and vehicle tax. It demands opening up of agricultural trade and advocates complete loan waiver for farmers.

Another significant proposal is dismantling the public distribution system (PDS) and replacing it with food coupons or direct cash transfers to help the beneficiaries purchase food from the market.

The blueprint also covers the issue of affordable housing. It notes that countries like South Africa, Singapore and Britain have made strides in this regard and pitches for the government to directly implement SRA schemes.

Maharashtra Candidates List for Assembly Elections 2014

The 288-member strong Maharashtra Assembly will go on single phase polling on October 15, 2014. While 29 seats are reserved for SCs, 25 seats are reserved for STs. Model Code of Conduct for all political parties in the state came into force on September 12, 2014. The current Legislative Assembly of Maharashtra ends on November 8, 2014. As per Election Commission, the total electorate or voters in Maharashtra is 8,25,91,826.

Interestingly, all the major political parties in the state – Indian National Congress (INC), Shiv Sena (SS), Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) – will contest solo during 2014 Assembly Election. Both long time alliances SS-BJP (of 25 years) and INC-NCP (of 15 years) broke on differences regarding seat sharing  issue.

List of INC Candidates for Maharashtra Assembly (Vidhan Sabha) Elections 2014

List of BJP Candidates for Maharashtra Assembly (Vidhan Sabha) Elections 2014

List of MNS Candidates for Maharashtra Assembly (Vidhan Sabha) Elections 2014

List of NCP Candidates for Maharashtra Assembly (Vidhan Sabha) Elections 2014

List of Shiv Sena Candidates for Maharashtra Assembly (Vidhan Sabha) Elections 2014

The names of candidates for Shiv Sena (SS) for Maharashtra Elections 2014 will be announced soon.

Mumbai: A day after the split in the saffron alliance, Shiv Sena on Friday lashed out at BJP, calling it “enemy of Maharashtra”, signalling a return to its original pro-Marathi agenda for next month’s assembly polls.
“Our other (Mahayuti) alliance parties wanted the Sena-BJP association to continue. More than that, it was what the 11 crore people of Maharashtra wanted. Those who trampled these sentiments are enemies of Maharashtra,” Shiv Sena said in an editorial in party mouthpiece ‘Saamana’
“This (breaking of alliance) is an insult to the 105 Marathi martyrs of the Samyukta Maharashtra movement,” the editorial went on to say. It also termed as “unfortunate” the demise of the long-standing alliance between the two ideologically compatible pro-Hindutva parties.
“It is unfortunate that the Sena-BJP alliance, which for the last 25 years was bound by the Hindutva ideology, has ended. We made sincere efforts till the end to ensure that the alliance with BJP and other parties of Mahayuti remained intact,” the editorial said.
“Those who till yesterday were praying in this tent are now offering namaz in the other tent,” it said, apparently targeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his recent remarks praising the “patriotism” of Indian Muslims. “Soon the realisation will dawn that those who flew away (BJP) were crows of ‘pitrapaksh’ and those who remain are Mavle (a term used for Chhhatrapati Shivaji’s soldiers),” the editorial said.
Referring to senior Congress leader Narayan Rane’s recent allegation that the BJP-led government at the Centre was trying to reduce the importance of Mumbai as the country’s financial capital by shifting RBI’s foreign exchange divisions to Delhi, the editorial said, “Today Congress leaders are decrying conspiracy to reduce the state’s importance. But Morarji Desai too was of flesh and blood of Congress.”
It was during Desai’s tenure as Chief Minister that 105 volunteers of the Samyukta Maharashtra Movement were killed while demanding a separate state for Marathi-speaking people with Bombay as its capital.

Frankfurt, Sept 26:
After an overnight transit halt here, Prime Minister Narendra Modi today left for his maiden visit to the US, during which he will address the UN General Assembly, hold talks with President Barack Obama and meet top American corporate honchos, besides a series of other engagements.
On his first leg of the high-profile five-day visit, Modi will land in New York, where he will address the 69th session of the UN General Assembly (UNGA) tomorrow and a rally at the famous Madison Square Garden on Sunday, which is likely to be attended by around 20,000 people from the Indian-American community.
Modi will have a summit-level meeting with Obama on September 30 and today in an op-ed in The Wall Street Journal, the Prime Minister described America as India’s “natural global partner’’.
“The US is our natural global partner. India and the US embody the enduring and universal relevance of their shared values,” Modi wrote.
Modi is visiting the US after being denied a visa in 2005 for his alleged role in the 2002 communal violence in Gujarat when he was the tate’s chief minister.
The Prime Minister will have a gruelling schedule in New York which includes a meeting with as many as 11 top corporate honchos over breakfast on September 29 apart from one-on-one meetings with six more business captains the same day.
In New York, Modi will pay a visit to the 9/11 memorial on Saturday following which he is expected to drive down to the United Nations headquarters to address the 69th annual session of the UNGA.
Obama will host a rare private dinner for Modi at the White House on September 29 to establish a personal relationship with the Indian leader ahead of summit talks the next day. The two leaders are meeting for the first time.
Modi will also be participating in a business meet, to be organised by the US-India Business Council (USIBC), expected to be attended by 300-400 businessmen in Washington on September 30.
Seeking enhanced ties, in the op-ed, Modi said the complementary strengths of India and the US can be used for inclusive and broad-based global development to transform lives across the world.
“This is a moment of flux in the global order. I am confident in the destiny of our two nations, because democracy is the greatest source of renewal and, with the right conditions, offers the best opportunity for the human spirit to flourish,” he said.