After RSS mouthpiece says allying with Ajit Pawar reduced BJP’s brand value, NCP responds

In his article, RSS’s Ratan Sharda Maharashtra said was a prime example of unnecessary politicking and avoidable manipulations done by the BJP leadership.

An opinion piece written by a Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) worker in the organisation’s mouthpiece Organiser, which among other reasons for the BJP’s failure to achieve intended success in the recently concluded Lok Sabha elections blamed ‘unnecessary politicking’ done by party leaders, has now caused political controversy in Maharashtra.

Ratan Sharda, a lifelong RSS worker, said in his article allying with NCP leader Ajit Pawar reduced the ‘brand value of BJP’ and also made it ‘just another party without any difference’. Sharda also said the result of the Lok Sabha elections 2024 have served as a reality check for “overconfident” BJP workers and many of its leaders as they were happy in their “bubble” and enjoying the glow of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s aura but not listening to voices on the streets.

According to Sharda, Maharashtra was a prime example of unnecessary politicking and avoidable manipulations done by the Bharatiya Janata Party leadership, pointing to the decision of allying with Ajit Pawar although the BJP and Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena had a comfortable majority. “Why was this ill-advised step taken? BJP supporters were hurt because they had fought against this Congress ideology for years and were persecuted. In a single stroke, the BJP reduced its brand value. After years of struggle to become numero uno in Maharashtra, it became just another political party without any difference,” said Sharda, who has authored several books.

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Responding to the questions, Ajit Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party’s chief spokesperson Umesh Patil told reporters on Wednesday the party was sure that BJP’s central leadership does not agree with the views expressed in the Organiser article. “The NDA’s co-ordination committee also has RSS members. As per my information, in the review taken about (the Mahayuti performance in Maharashtra), the NCP has not been blamed for the results. The BJP’s central leadership has allied with Ajit Pawar, who is seen as an able leader, considering the long-term view,” Patil told reporters.

He gave an example of Assam Chief Minister Hemant Biswa Sharma, a Congress turncoat, whose induction into the BJP was criticised at the time but it later worked in the saffron party’s favour.

In the Lok Sabha elections 2024, Mahayuti’s performance significantly dwindled with the alliance winning just 17 of Maharashtra’s 48 seats while MVA won 31 seats, including one Independent candidate who rebelled before the polls but has since returned to the party fold.

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