Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar.
| Photo Credit: ANI
As the buzz round Maharashtra Leader of Opposition and senior Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Ajit Pawar becoming a member of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) with a bit of NCP MLAs grew extra intense, celebration chief Sharad Pawar broke his silence at the moment, calling reports of a serious schism within his celebration “meaningless” whereas remarking that the NCP was working “as one united party.”
“Ajit Pawar is busy with election-related work. All this talk [of him joining the BJP along with 40 NCP legislators] is only in the media,” mentioned Mr. Pawar, talking to reporters in Pune.
Also learn: Amid buzz of recent alignments in Maharashtra, Ajit Pawar denies having met Amit Shah in Mumbai
Likewise, the NCP supremo denied that he had known as any assembly of NCP MLAs. Mr. Pawar’s daughter, NCP MP from Baramati Supriya Sule dismissed hypothesis round Ajit Pawar as baseless whereas remarking that her cousin brother was very a lot the Leader of Opposition.
“This discussion is only in your (media’s) mind. This news [Mr. Pawar joining the BJP] has absolutely no importance. Someone is working to create such phoney news. This has no meaning. There has been no meeting of NCP MLAs. All I can say is that the Nationalist Congress Party and all our colleagues are working with one mind in the party with the sole objective of how to make the NCP stronger. Apart from that, there is no other thought in anyone’s mind,” mentioned Mr. Pawar, remarking that he could be going to Mumbai tonight.
The NCP supremo additional mentioned that when he had given a agency clarification, others had no enterprise to take pleasure in wild hypothesis on his celebration’s affairs.
Even as indicators pointed that every one was not effectively within the NCP, the celebration’s brand in addition to Sharad Pawar’s photograph was lacking from Ajit Pawar’s official Twitter and Facebook accounts, triggering much more hypothesis in regards to the Leader of Opposition’s subsequent transfer.
However, NCP spokesman Mahesh Tapase downplayed the lacking NCP brand from Ajit Pawar’s social media accounts by stating that Mr. Ajit Pawar “was very much in the NCP”.
“I must point out that Ajit Pawar has tweeted a photo of Tatya Tope [important leader during the 1857 Rebellion] on the latter’s death anniversary which does feature the NCP’s logo. I do not know who handles Mr. Pawar’s Twitter and Facebook accounts and why the NCP wallpaper [with the party logo and Sharad Pawar’s photo] was removed, but I can assure that there is no problem within the NCP,” Mr. Tapase mentioned.
On April 17, Ajit Pawar had reportedly cancelled his applications in Pune district. There was hypothesis that he had summoned a gathering of MLAs’ in Mumbai that was to happen at the moment.
Later that night time, Mr. Pawar, in a press release had firmly denied reports of him calling a gathering or that he had any pre-scheduled applications.
Also learn: Fissures resurface in MVA over Ajit Pawar’s ‘soft’ stand in the direction of Shinde-Fadnavis govt.
“I had no scheduled event on Monday. I am in Mumbai. Tomorrow (Tuesday, April 18) I will be present in my office at the Vidhan Bhavan and regular office work will continue. The news that I have called a meeting of the MLAs is being published in some sections of the media is completely false. It should be noted that I did not call a meeting of MLAs or office bearers,” learn Mr. Ajit Pawar’s assertion.
Meanwhile, NCP MLC Amol Mitkari that reports of Ajit Pawar becoming a member of the BJP have been “utterly baseless” and was disinformation being unfold by the BJP.
Commenting on the buzz, BJP chief Atul Bhatkhalkar mentioned that it was “the NCP’s internal matter and BJP had nothing to do with it.”
However, leaders from the BJP’s ruling ally, the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena mentioned they’d welcome Mr. Ajit Pawar into the alliance if he “was aligned to the BJP and Shiv Sena’s ideology.”
“Ajit Pawar is a strong leader and there is no question about his work. All this while, he has been working under the pressure of his superiors,” mentioned Shinde camp MLA Sanjay Shirsat.
Mr. Shirsat additional claimed that not simply solely Ajit Pawar, however even many MLAs within the Congress have been reportedly keen to be part of the ruling coalition.
Taking a jibe at Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray, he mentioned: “The Congress and NCP could not accept the fact that someone with a mere 15 MLAs (Uddhav Thackeray) was helming the MVA alliance.”
Shinde camp Minister Gulabrao Patil cryptically mentioned that “dark clouds had gathered over the NCP” and {that a} second “political earthquake” was imminent in Maharashtra’s politics.
