Mumbai: Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar has by all means rejected the claim that his party fellow, Sunil Tatkare, was attempting to influence members of the opposing faction within the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) led by Sharad Pawar. The allegations put forward by former state minister Jitendra Awhad said that Tatkare had contacted the rival faction to get them to switch sides, in doing so, adding to the internal turmoil faced by the NCP.
On Wednesday, Jitendra Awhad, an NCP MLA and former minister, spoke out against Sunil Tatkare, the Maharashtra unit chief of the Ajit Pawar-led NCP faction, for having contacted MPs from the rival Sharad Pawar-led group. Awhad claimed that Tatkare had told these MPs that they should “leave Sharad Pawar and his daughter Supriya Sule,” making the rift within the party even worse.
Ajit Pawar’s Reply
Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar categorically rejected these allegations as baseless. He remarked, “These are all lies. Three to four MPs (from NCP-SP)—Nilesh Lankhe, Amar Kale, and two others—have clearly expressed in front of the media that neither Tatkare nor anyone else had contacted them at all. If they claim that no phone calls were made, why are these allegations being levelled?”
Tatkare equally denied the accusations, proposing that these remarks are simply a measure of the NCP-SP faction to preserve their togetherness after their defeat in the November 2024 Maharashtra Assembly elections.
Intra-party Mechanism
Earlier, NCP-SP leader Anil Deshmukh proclaimed that all 12 MPs from the party had their backs with Sharad Pawar. He angrily clashed with the rumours of any marriage of the rival factions gathered within the NCP, clearing that there is no truth to the speculations. He was addressing the reports suggesting that Ajit Pawar’s faction had made overtures to certain Lok Sabha MPs by the Sharad Pawar group with the purpose of incorporating them into their fold.
There had been discussions about a possible reconciliation between the leadership of Sharad Pawar and his nephew Ajit Pawar after the Maharashtra Assembly elections. Nevertheless, Deshmukh flatly rejected these rumours by stating, “All this is false. Our eight Lok Sabha MPs and four Rajya Sabha members associate with Sharad Pawar.”
Impact on Politics
The status quo within NCP has been the object of questioning and political manoeuvring. The accusations and counter-charges unveil the strong cracks that have developed between the party members, which could tunnel down their future political careers tremendously. As the state gears up for the coming elections, the actual standing and evolution of the NCP will be pivotal for its future political battle.
The burgeoning skirmish within NCP brings to light a rather complicated scheme of the governing party of Maharashtra. As both factions are together competing for power and influence, the outcome of this internal conflict might give the party some new direction and shape the party’s role in the state politics.