Maharashtra’s ‘Pawar’ Battle Continues, As Both Sharad & Ajit Try To Woo Legislators
India’s industrial capital Mumbai is currently flooded with high voltage political drama. As posters seeking support for Sharad Pawar or Ajit Pawar have sprung up in various parts of Mumbai, the battle for ‘Pawar’ seems to be heading to no end. Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Ajit Pawar today said that he aspires to be the Maharashtra Chief Minister one day. His ‘desire’ comes in the wake of the rebellion, where he orchestrated a coup against his uncle and party leader Sharad Pawar.
The banners outside Sharad Pawar's residence asked people to come support the "83-year-old warrior fighting alone". Ironically, the Ajit Pawar camp has also been using the photo of the NCP patriarch, despite Sharad Pawar explicitly asking them not to.
It may be recalled that Maharashtra politics has been witnessing this high ‘Pawar’ drama since last week, when NCP Supremo Sharad Pawar’s Nephew and party leader Ajit Pawar resigned as the leader of the Opposition and hours later took oath as the Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister. Eight other NCP legislators were also sworn in and the state government is expected to announce a cabinet expansion soon. The move was shocking enough, highlighting his political aspirations in more ways than one. The 63-year-old also submitted a request to the Election Commission, staking his claim to the party's name and symbol.
Today, separate shows of strength meetings had been organised by the Nationalist Congress Party's Sharad Pawar and Ajit Pawar groups. While Ajit Pawar paraded nearly 40 MLAs and MLCs, the opposing faction only had 17 MLAs. It may be recalled that the NCP has 53 MLAs in the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly.
Earlier, NCP's working president Supriya Sule urged party leaders and workers to turn up at the meet in large numbers and seek guidance from Sharad Pawar on the road ahead. The Ajit Pawar camp is reportedly requesting MLAs to make a "practical decision" while Sharad Pawar's NCP is relying on the 83-year-old's popularity and experience.
While some legislators have arrived at both the venues, those who stayed away from today's meetings could be the key players when the Election Commission takes a call on the NCP name and symbol.
Meanwhile, Sharad Pawar's party has moved a petition before Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar seeking the disqualification of Ajit Pawar and the 8 MLAs who have taken oath as ministers in the Eknath Shinde-led government.
However, the drama doesn’t end here. Disqualification procedures may still be initiated even if Ajit Pawar gets 50 of the 53 MLA seats since the Supreme Court has ruled that the original political party must combine under the 10th schedule and that the legislative party cannot exist independently of a political party. Therefore, Ajit Pawar's show of force won't have any bearing on the disqualification process.
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