The Golden Gang of Mumbai
Unmesh Gujarathi
Editor in Chief
An unofficial cabal called the ‘मंत्रालय आणि विधीमंडळ वार्ताहर संघ’ (‘Mantralaya and Legislature Correspondents’ Association’) has been operating ‘officially’ in ‘Mantralaya’, the state Governments headquarter and also in ‘Vidhan Bhavan’, the Legislature for the past several years. ‘Unauthorised’ in the sense that the purported news syndicate operating at the state’s topmost administrative and legislative level is not registered with the Charity Commissioner or any similar Government body. In a way, it is totally illegal and unofficial.
This association has no recognized constitution or by-laws. However, the voter list of this union is prepared occasionally (at the time of election) and the elections are held at regular intervals. The old executive committee goes, and the new one takes over. When a new committee takes the reign, the Chief Minister invites them to ‘Varsha’, where the office-bearers are felicitated.
What’s more, when the Chief Minister first arrives at the Mantralaya after the swearing-in, he visits the MVVS, after paying tributes to the images of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and Rajmata Jijau Saheb before proceeding to his office on the sixth floor, where he sits in the Chief Minister’s chair only after the conversation. This practice has been going on for many years.
These so-called ‘MVVS’ have no legal or statutory existence, and are not even registered with the Government. However, the State Government’s Directorate General of Information and Public Relations maintains a good book with the association. All the facilities such as separate air-conditioned office, well-equipped meeting facilities, computer system, 4th class staff, telephone, xerox machine, printer, and all newspapers are provided to this unofficial organization very officially.
Even in Vidhan Bhawan, this Sangh has occupied a very strategic and spacious place in a similar unauthorized way. This unconstitutional practice has been going on undisturbed for many years in the holy building where laws are made.
The Information Department office is situated on the ground floor of the Mantralaya building. When the building was repaired and restructured after the fire incident, this camel named ‘MVVS’, which entered the tent of the Information Department, usurped the strategic position of the Information Department. Over the years as the department expanded, the space began to shrink. Meanwhile, this team occupied a large space by evicting the ‘owner’.
Also Read: What Is Mantralaya’s ‘Golden Gang’ Up To?
As of today, the Directors of Information, Deputy Directors and other officers are sitting in tiny cabins and doing their job, where space is very scarce. At the same time, these so-called MVVS members are enjoying a lavish and spacious office. Some officers in DGIPR tried to oppose the move to allot this prime space to MVVS. But their efforts failed as this team has ‘direct’ contacts with the Chief Minister.
As a result, DGIPR lost this prime space which has been allotted to the ‘nonexisting’ ‘MVVS’. The ‘Arab’ was thrown out of his own tent and the camel occupied the tent as in the famous Aesop’s fable.
Unmesh Gujarathi
Editor in Chief
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