Gadkari says 99% of Nagpur's 'underworld his supporters,' then clarifies
What's the story
Union Minister Nitin Gadkari has claimed that 99% of Nagpur's "underworld and social world" are his supporters before quickly clarifying that this does not mean he endorses criminal activities. "I am very ideological, but 99% of Nagpur's underworld and social world are my supporters. But do not infer from this that I have very close relations with them," Gadkari said. The minister made these remarks while inaugurating the IIM Nagpur Media Conclave 2026 on September 5.
Vote
'Have done everything in politics'
Gadkari said he received 92% of the votes in "criminal, underworld, and red-light areas," compared to around 70-75% of the votes in some of Nagpur's highly educated areas.
He explained that his relationships with people in such localities stem from his development and social work efforts in the region.
"I have built roads there and done social work," Gadkari said.
"I have done everything in politics. I have done good....bad things, and I have relationships with people across the spectrum."
Voting behavior
Educated voters' apathy in elections
Gadkari also shared his own electoral experience to criticize educated voters for not turning up on election days.
He said, "You say, 'I will come now, I will come later,' and then 5pm comes and you don't come to vote."
The minister stressed that the electorate is the biggest challenge facing Indian democracy.
"The biggest problem of democracy is not political parties and leaders. It is the people. So, commitment to democracy is important," Gadkari said.
Political stance
Gadkari's take on caste-based politics
He called for voters to choose based on social, economic, and educational issues instead of caste or religion.
Gadkari also spoke about his own experience with caste-based politics, saying that when he was the BJP president, he had experimented with creating separate cells for different castes in an attempt to secure votes.
The experiment, he said, did not work and instead created problems for him.
He later decided that he would focus on his agenda and development work.