Vacate chair if party work isn’t a priority: Ajit Pawar tells NCP ministers

Sometimes, ministers neglect them… everyone including me will have to rectify the mistakes. If not, you will have to vacate the chair,” said Pawar at the NCP’s one-day study workshop in Nagpur.

“If any minister is finding work other than party important, we will ensure that the post (minister’s) is vacant. We will give that to someone else,” said Pawar. He further stressed that ministers are required to submit information about the days to be spent in Mumbai and works to be undertaken as guardian minister in respective districts to NCP Maharashtra chief Sunil Tatkare.

The Deputy CM was upset after many office-bearers, including some ministers, reached late for the flag-hoisting ceremony before the beginning of the study workshop. “Just the manner in which rules are strictly followed before the plane take-off, those will be followed in the party as well,” he said.

Earlier, NCP’s working president Praful Patel had also slammed ministers of his own party. “The district guardian ministers come to their respective districts for one or two hours. They should come for work and not for tourism,” he said.

The direct attack by Pawar and Patel on their own ministers has raised eyebrows within the party. “The party ministers have been given different districts than their home districts as guardian ministers. A majority of those are in the under-developed Marathwada and Vidarbha regions. The party ministers are already upset about it and therefore seem to have chosen to not visit there often,” said a senior party leader, adding that the intent behind both senior leaders’ remarks was to encourage the ministers to visit more regularly.