Following the cancellation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Pune, the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) on Friday staged a protest, demanding the immediate opening of Pune Metro's District Court to Swargate stretch. Congress, Shiv Sena (UBT), and Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar) leaders criticised the PM, accusing him of delaying the inauguration. They also demanded that the money spent on the preparation of the cancelled event on Thursday be incurred from the PM's pocket.

Prashant Jagtap, Pune City President, NCP (SP), said, "For the preparation of the event, the administration spent a lot of money. This expenditure should be incurred from the PM's pocket. It is kind of a joke that the country's PM is visiting Pune every year to inaugurate the same metro line."

Congress MLA Ravindra Dhangekar added, "The metro stretch should have started on the same day. The PM could have done a virtual inauguration. What was wrong with that? Five times in five years, PM Modi visited Pune just for a small stretch. The public is paying huge taxes, and he should reply to them."

Arvind Shinde, Pune City President, Congress, asked, "How many times should the PM visit a city to inaugurate the same metro route?" He added, "It's a financial loss for Pune residents."

Sanjay More, Pune City President, Shiv Sena (UBT), further said, "If the Prime Minister is worried about Pune's rain and potholes, then why did he plan to inaugurate manually? Modi should have pressed the green button while sitting in Delhi. Punekars are asking about the financial loss from his visit. Pune Metro should be started for the public, not wait for the PM to inaugurate."

PM Modi's visit to Pune on Thursday was cancelled due to heavy rains in the city. He was to flag off the metro corridor and launch development projects worth ₹22,600 crore ahead of the Maharashtra Assembly elections.

All eyes on Sunday

Union Minister of State for Civil Aviation and Cooperation Murlidhar Mohol has informed that PM Modi will now virtually inaugurate the metro stretch and other projects on Sunday. "PM Narendra Modi will be inaugurating the Shivajinagar District Court - Swargate stretch of Pune Metro and lay the foundation stone of Swargate - Katraj stretch virtually on 29th September," he wrote on X (formerly Twitter). Along with this, the Prime Minister will also perform the bhoomi pujan of other projects like the Savitribai Phule Memorial at Bhide Wada and the inauguration of Solapur airport.

Speaking to The Free Press Journal, Hemant Sonawane, Executive Director (Administration and Public Relations), Pune Metro, said, "We had informed in a press release that due to heavy rainfall in the city, the inauguration has been postponed. Now, the inauguration ceremony has been scheduled for Sunday. It will be virtually inaugurated by PM Modi."