Gadkari says seat-sharing talks on in Maharashtra, exudes confidence in BJP's win. Here’s the Q&A

Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari at the Rising Bharat Summit on March 19.

Union minister Nitin Gadkari, addressing the audience at CNN-News18's 'Rising Bharat' 2024 leadership conclave on March 19, reaffirmed his allegiance to the BJP, stating that he is a dedicated worker of the party and intends to remain so. He emphasised the principle of "Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas" as articulated by Prime Minister Modi, underscoring his commitment to inclusive development. Gadkari also expressed his deep connection with the people of his parliamentary constituency, considering them as his own family.

Here's an edited excerpt of the translated interview with CNN-News18's Amish Devgan:

It used to be said about Atal Bihari Vajpayee that he was a good fellow, but in the wrong party. And, if this is said about anybody after Vajpayee, it is said about Nitin Gadkari that he is a good man but has entered the wrong party. Why is this as such?

This is absolutely wrong. The party is good, and the person is also good. I began my life as a volunteer of the Sangh and as a worker of the Vidyarthi Parishad. And today, whatever I am, the goodness that is in me, it’s due to these two organisations, all this goodness is present. So, I am very much proud of my convictions, and if I am good, then my party is good, and if I am good, then my ideology is good. This is all I can say.

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But don’t you think you entered politics by mistake? You say that you won’t put up posters, won’t waste money on anything, then how will you win elections?

If you come to my constituency, so I have said that I don’t believe in racism and communalism. Our Prime Minister has said, ‘Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas, Sabka Prayas.’ So, I consider the voters in my constituency as my family. And 10 years whatever work I have done, due to that, people have been acquainted by my name and my work. And that is why I said, there is no need now for posters, banners and for any promotion.

Secondly, I am connected to the people. So, I don’t have the need to give people any service in exchange for their votes. I will meet people, go to their houses, take out time, take elders’ blessings, and I will campaign house to house and man to man. And my belief is that I will win the elections by a good margin; such is my belief.

This time, a third hattrick is expected to happen. First Modi government’s hattrick – if Narendra Modi wins this term, then it will be a big deal – a non-Congress government will for the first time win three straight national elections. The second-time win in 2019 was also a record for a non-Congress government at the centre. And thirdly, they will emerge from Nagpur, victorious once again, the third time. So, how difficult does this path seem? Modi’s third term and you winning the Lok Sabha the third time?

See, firstly, Modi is going to become the Prime Minister, it is fixed. Secondly, we are going to go past 400, this too is fixed. And I am going to win the elections, this too is certain.

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But what is there in Nitin Gadkari that the opposition’s leaders become fans? I was reading in the newspaper that Sonia Gandhi praised you. What is there as such?

This, I too am surprised because in the parliament when 75 parliamentarians spoke about my department -- from different parties, everyone thanked me, everyone welcomed me, then I too was surprised. So, the main thing is that, the legal work, is according to rules, it should be for everybody. And if there's wrongdoing, one shouldn't be associated with it. So, I make roads – I make a road in one constituency and leave the other, this doesn’t happen. So, whoever comes to me with a problem, I have tried to do everyone’s work. So, for that reason, in their mind is the solution of this, this is probably the reason for it.

One thing that hasn’t changed in you – I had interviewed you the first time in the year 2011 which I remember, at your home in Mumbai. And then you were the National President of the BJP. Even then you were frank and today also you are very frank. Doesn’t being so frank weight heavily on you? Or does it?

Well, you can analyse how I am. The questions which are asked, I reply them humbly and correctly. And I say what I think is the truth. So, I don’t think there is any problem in this.

But the opposition keeps coming up with something and social media bloggers keep on writing something.

No, some people are such that what has not been said, they put those words in the mouth and one man writes it on his site and then others pick that up and write. So, in reality who has said that, we should get into those details, we should see that and then we should give feedback on that.

If you are frank, then you are frank in front of the Prime Minister as well, frank in front of the Home Minister Amit Shah too?

Certainly, when it comes to having conversations, the Prime Minister listens to us humbly, and keep everything in mind, there is no impediment. Even I was the party’s chairman. People would tell me everything that time. So, our party is one party and everyone puts their thoughts, and the final decision everyone together or the Prime Minister or the party chairman – the leader, what he says, is a decision in that, and the party goes ahead.

A statement has come from Uddhav Thackeray, where he is inviting you to come and he will get you get you a ticket from MVA (Maha Vikas Aghadi). Maharashtra doesn’t bow down in front of Delhi.

See, the first thing is that when the Parliamentary Board had its meeting, then along with Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh’s rank officers, a decision will be made after discussion. Now I fight from Maharashtra, so the rank officers of Maharashtra did not come and discuss with them, so naturally, the possibility of my name wasn’t there in the first list. Now my name has come in the second list. I am a worker of the BJP. If I fight, I will fight from BJP, there is no question of going to another party. And such kind of offers are laughable, because I am connected to my party, it’s stream of thought, will stay in this party and will work in this party.

Yes, but earlier you had said that no matter which party’s government is there, one thing is certain that, the person who works, doesn’t get respect. Why did you say this?

I did not say this. This is the confusion. I said this is happening in the system, which I had said especially for people working in the government. Even before that also my introduction was that people who do good work, don’t get respect and people who do bad work, he doesn’t get punished, because the system is so complicated that good people don’t get an award immediately, and those who do something, it takes so many years for the enquiry, that he doesn’t get punished; this was an explanation of that. This did not have a connection to politics. Not you, but a person like you, your friend, without taking reference, he spreads such kinds of things.

Nowadays, people even put the blame of social media on the media. Now social media –

This doesn’t happen. What is printed wrong in social media, you immediately take it and organise a program to discuss it and then take it forward, this is the problem.

In 2022, you had said that you deeply feel like bidding ado to politics. But –

I had never said anything like this.

But this is your statement, sir.

This is absolutely wrong. I had said that we need to redefine the definition of politics. Only power politics; politics is not for the sake of power. For social reasons, for national reasons and for development reasons, this is also politics. And when Mahatma Gandhi Ji launched the movement for the country's independence, that movement was also for the nation. So, 80 percent of us do it because of society, and 20 percent because of power. And you would have seen it day before yesterday also – I distributed 87 chairs to the handicapped. I organised about 50,000 heart operations –

This morning, you had tweeted a video about a girl who had a hole in her heart. You got her treated under your constituency. Really, these are all touching subjects, but if we talk about politics, Nitin Ji, so Raj Thackeray is in Delhi, and if he is in Delhi, then something big is cooking. So, is there a talk of an alliance?

See, just this morning I received a call from Raj Thackeray. He had some passport work, that is completed, he called to thank me.

Passport of where? NDA?

No, his own. Otherwise, what conversations he had, or didn’t have, this will happen today, I will have to see, I don’t know anything about it.

But you want Raj Thackeray to come?

See, that decision the party will take.

What do you feel like?

I have no personal wish. Party officials, party Chairman and parliamentary board, Prime Minister will do what they feel like.

There are a lot of questions and answers about the seat division in Maharashtra. But since you are in front of me, let me ask you, what is happening there?

Nothing, everything is going on properly. The seats are almost divided.

Is Shinde Ji happy?

Yes, everybody. What happens is till the elections, till the candidates are not ready, till then there is one seat, and 10 candidates. So, there are a few discussions, controversies which keep happening. This is how it is. And I feel this will almost be finalised now and we will fight together. And we will get a great victory in Maharashtra, this is my belief.

NDA is an alliance since many years but this time a new alliance has been created, I.N.D.I.A. Alliance. But before that could be made, it tripped over. How do you feel about that alliance? Because it is a major challenge in Maharashtra.

I look at my party and my alliance. I have a philosophy which I keep telling people often that there are two fibres [ph], one is yours and one is the other’s. There are two ways to make the fibres big, make yours big, or worship the other one. So, I often believe, make yours bigger. And 10 years under the leadership of Modi, the work which we have done, which people experience – now when I was coming, so on twitter I – the Dwarka Express Highway was made. So, there is so much happiness in people that so many people’s feedback I received. So, in 10 years what work we have done, this government, under the leadership of Modi Ji, under that trust, we will gain success. We have to tell people our positivity and our work. We don’t have the need to get into the negative matters.

There are talks about giving the Maratha community a 10 percent reservation. In regard to this matter, politics is happening but there is a social demand as well. How do you see this? Is this issue a big political challenge to deal with in Maharashtra, for the BJP, your alliance?

The Chief Minister has already talked to them about this and found a solution for this. Now this is not an issue any more.

But electoral bonds are an issue? There are a lot of questions and answers about it. Rahul Gandhi has even said, this is BJP’s biggest electoral scam.

I think even now this is being discussed in the Supreme Court. When this matter is sub judice in the Supreme Court, so commenting on that would be contempt of court. To say anything more would be inappropriate.

There is even a coincidence in it that most of the donations that the BJP has received, are from infrastructure companies. Now this is a coincidence. 

See, there is one thing I can tell you. I have awarded work worth Rs 50 lakh crore in the last 10 years in water resources, shipping, in the road sector, ropeway, cable car, tunnel, express highways. We haven’t done a single job without e-tender. And I humbly call before you if even one person who will come and tell you in your ears that for some work, he will have to give money, then tell me, I am willing to accept the punishment for it. We are completely transparent, corruption-free, timebound, and we have always worked along with quality and commitment and haven’t done any wrong activity.

It’s often discussed in Delhi and Mumbai that BJP party is rich but the leaders are poor. Congress leaders are rich but the party is poor. What is your statement on this?

See, how wealthy a person is in his life, it’s a question connected to him. But there’s one thing I say often that, if somebody honestly does business, trade in his life and prospers, then this is due to his entrepreneurship, his company, his technology, this is his strength. And if such entrepreneurs increase in the country, then the country will develop. And I feel that tomorrow, these entrepreneurs will go and invest abroad. So, we have to create such an economy which creates employment. And if we have to create employment, then we will need capital investment, entrepreneurship, technology, and on the basis of this, if someone goes to different sectors and does work, then he is not only a wealth creator, he is an employment creator. His caste, religion, language and personality, what do we have to do with that?

But when you spoke about caste and religion, so there are many questions and answers about CAA, why did you’ll bring the CAA just before the elections? The notification. It could have been brought about later or earlier.

See, these matters are clear in the constitution. It is absolutely clear that those who are of the Hindu, Buddhism, Sikh or Jain religion, if those people go abroad and if they are removed from there, they don’t have the right to go to any other country. This is why naturally our constitution tells them that they can be given citizenship in India legally. Naturally, many things are clear in the constitution and on the basis of that decision has been taken.

You have created a world record in terms of roads. Not one or two, you have created seven world records. Is there any such work that you have not done in the past 10 years and now when BJP comes into power, you will want to do?

See, in road construction, we are making 36 green express highways. About, 284 km, we are making Rs 2 lakh crore worth of tunnels. And we are making a Kashmir to Kanyakumari express highway, which will be ready by December, approximately. Now we have started public transport and electricity on our end. We are making 260 rope way, cable car, funicular railway. Now the Prime Minister’s thought is that when we complete 100 years, what would be our vision then?

So, public transport and electricity, water transport – like when I was the shipping minister, then in Mumbai the new airport was being built in Navi Mumbai. So, I created a report on behalf of PPT, that from any direction in Mumbai, you will reach airport in 17 minutes, and made a jetty in the new airport. Like there is a taxi, air taxi, similarly we have made water taxi.

And with this water taxi, from Vasai-Virar, from Nariman Point, in only 17 minutes you will reach the new airport.

In Italy’s Venice you get off at the hotel and keep your luggage in the water and directly get off at the airport. So, it’s a similar idea like that. Sea plane, I had experimented and it landed on the water, there will be a big revolution in the transport sector. And on the basis of indigenous fuel – like how in public transport there are big buses – I was doing a study in Bangalore that double-decker buses running in the air in Bangalore – we were studying that project that will run on top, since you can’t make the roads bigger. Naturally metro cost per kilometre is Rs 350 crore and the technology I am talking about, comes Rs 20-25 crore. By making use of new technologies - - now from Dhaula Kuan to Manesar, in between, on top, we had studied a pond system. So, these new technologies in the transport sector, these are technologies of the future and about them there were some studies which happened. We are making 670 roads and amenities. If you ask me –

What one work that you want to do?

One work among these that I could do best, then in 2014 when I became a minister, then 1 crore people used to do the work of pulling other people. There was a cycle rickshaw or else carrying someone on their shoulder – like Bihar, Bengal, North East. I introduced mechanised driven e-rickshaw and now I am happy that 1 crore people who were being exploited, they have got freedom. They are driving e-cart or e-rickshaws and in one way, they are free from human exploitation. I have made many express, road, highways, tunnels, but this work was the best for me.

(This translation of the interaction has been edited for clarity)