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Amid growing speculation, Ajit Pawar made it clear that he would stay with the NCP. (File) Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Ajit Pawar skipped a meeting of his party's unity in Mumbai on Friday, shocking political circles as speculation over his next political move they refuse to go extinct. Talking to reporters in Pune, Ajit Pawar played down the rumor saying that he was unable to attend the NCP convention because he had to be present for other shows that were taking place at the same time. He said you shouldn't read too much about it. The BJP said Maha Vikas Aghadi's leaders smeared him and questioned his credibility.
The one-day meeting in Mumbai was led by party leader Sharad Pawar and other senior leaders including Praful Patel, Jitendra Awhad, Supriya Sule, Chhagan Bhujbal and State Chairman Jayant Patil.
Praful Patel said that the Mumbai and Thane region has 60 seats in the Assembly and the NCP must do well in this belt if it wants to become the leading party in the state. In the 2019 national elections, the party won 54 seats in the 288-member Assembly.
Jitndra Awhad said the party can do well if the municipal elections are held under the leadership of Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Uddhav Thackeray in an alliance.
The NCP, Congress and Shiv Sena under Uddhav Thackeray were part of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government that collapsed last year following a rebellion by Eknath Shinde, who later joined forces with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to become the Chief Minister.
The NCP fought the Mumbai elections in alliance with the Congress with mixed results, Jayant Patil said. “We also need to redouble our efforts to get stronger at the grassroots level and connect with people on issues of housing and basic services,” he said.
In Pune, Ajit Pawar told reporters there was a choice between two events taking place at the same time. "There is no need to speculate," he said.
Intense speculation continues in Maharashtrian political circles about Ajit Pawar's growing closeness to the ruling BJP.
Earlier, the NCP also said that Ajit Pawar's inability to attend the party meeting does not mean that he plans to leave the organization.
Speaking about his absence from the meeting, NCP spokesman Clyde Crasto said the match event in Mumbai was scheduled to take place a month ago.
"Ajitdada is continuously busy and has accepted invitations to various programs in Pune. He has expressed his inability to attend (the NCP meeting). All the leaders have their schedules to follow. It's not because they can't attend a function, no it means they are planning to quit. He was present with (Sharad) Pawar saheb at an 'iftar' party earlier this week in Mumbai," Crasto said.
Rumors about Ajit Pawar's next political move began circulating last week when he suddenly canceled his scheduled meetings and also made comments that were seen as soft towards the BJP and CM Shinde camp.
Shiv Sena, led by Shinde, has said it will not be part of the Maharashtra government if Ajit Pawar joins the BJP along with a group of NCP leaders.
Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut added to the speculation when he wrote in his weekly column in party spokesman Saamana last Sunday that Sharad Pawar recently told Thackeray that there was a lot of pressure on some people to break ranks. . Families are targeted, but even if people take a different position, the NCP as a party will never go with the BJP, he wrote referring to Pawar.
Ajit Pawar clarified that he would stay with the NCP.
Sharad Pawar on Tuesday dismissed speculation about his nephew Ajit Pawar's next political move. He said that Ajit Pawar was busy with party work and there was no need for the media to drag the issue.
BJP head of state Chandrashekhar Bawankule said on Friday that MVA leaders smeared Ajit Pawar and questioned his credibility.
“They ask questions about Pawar's credibility. From the early morning they were sworn in (when Pawar broke ranks and sided with Devendra Fadnavis in 2019) until now, questions have been raised about his life, his position and his work,” Chandrashekhar said. Bawankule. journalists, adding that he had not seen Ajit Pawar in the past three months.
Chandrashekhar Bawankule also dismissed media reports that 13 CPN MPs are in contact with the BJP.
On November 23, 2019, David Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar were sworn in as Prime Minister and Deputy CM respectively, but the government fell without showing a majority on November 28.
