Sharad Pawar’s new strategy: frequent rallies, new leaders & social equations

For his next rally, three destinations have been finalised which are Kolhapur, Jalgaon and Manchar in Pune district. Kolhapur is the home district of rebel minister Hasan Mushrif. Jalgaon is a politically important district in north Maharashtra and home district of Sharad Pawar loyalist Eknath Khadse, who has switched to the NCP from the BJP.

The third location Manchar is in the Ambegaon Assembly constituency of Dilip Walse-Patil, rebel minister and one of the former close aides of Sharad Pawar.

“It has been decided that instead of one long tour, rallies will be held at regular intervals in strategic locations. We have seen the impact of Beed rally and the unease it created in the other group. People from different parts want Pawar saheb to come to their areas. Presently we will go to district headquarters,” said a leader who is part of the planning of Pawar’s programme.

Apart from rallies at strategic locations in regular intervals, new and young faces who were never given place on the stage earlier will be given important responsibilities. While NCP state chief Jayant Patil and former minister Jitendra Awhad continue to be by his side with Awhad launching direct attacks on Ajit Pawar group, new and young leaders are also being given space in new situation.

In Beed, local MLA Sandeep Kshirsagar, who was earlier declared as party’s district chief, was the centre of attraction. Pawar’s grandnephew and Karjat-Jamkhed MLA Rohit Pawar was urged by the crowd to make a speech in Beed. Apart from these two, the new team working with Pawar include young leaders Mehbub Sheikh, Ravikant Varpe from youth wing of the party, along with Mahesh Tapase from party’s communication department. State’s former Home minister late R R Patil’s son Rohit — who is travelling with Rohit Pawar — is set to be given important responsibility in the party organisation soon. In each rally henceforth, a new face from the district or the constituency will be brought in front of the crowd to take on the Ajit group’s leaders.

Along with this, Pawar’s side seem to be wooing the individuals keeping the social and political equations in mind. In Beed — which is the home district of state’s Agriculture Minister and Ajit Pawar’s close aide Dhananjay Munde — Munde’s arch-rival Baban Gite, who also belongs to the OBC Vanjari community, joined the party. In Kolhapur, Shahu Maharaj, the descendant of Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj, has reportedly accepted to preside over the public rally.