NCP Sharad Pawar group begins loyalty campaign

The party has asked Sharad Pawar supporters to give a missed call on 7030120012 after which the caller will get a link through SMS. The caller should submit his/her personal information through that link based on which the official digital card of the said caller will be downloaded. “The campaign will run from village to state level,” Patil said.

The NCP is facing a vertical split after Pawar’s nephew and senior party leader Ajit Pawar joined hands with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) along with eight other senior leaders. The Ajit group has approached the Election Commission of India (ECI) claiming the party symbol and name. The leaders supporting Ajit have also been claiming that they are the real NCP.

Meanwhile, the Sharad Pawar group has informed the ECI that there is no split in the party.

Late Monday, Patil announced district incharges of the party to strengthen the organisation. Former minister Anil Deshmukh will be in charge of Akola, Amaravati, Washim, Wardha, Nagpur and Chandrapur districts in Vidarbha while Eknath Khadse will handle party matters in Jalgaon, Buldhana, Nandurbar and Dhule.

Former health minister Rajesh Tope will be in charge of Auran-gabad, Osmanabad, Parbhani, Jalna and Latur. Jitendra Awhad will lead in Thane and Beed. Satara, Ratnagiri and Sindhudurg will be led by Balasaheb Patil, while Prajakt Tanpure will be in charge of Ahmadnagar and Nasik. Shirur MLA Ashok Pawar will handle party affairs in important Pune district while first Time MLA Rohit Pawar will be in charge of Bhan-dara, Gondia and Raigad. Another first-time MLA Sunil Bhusara will be in charge of Palghar, Hingoli, Nanded and Gadchiroli.