State NCP (SP) meet to be held in Mumbai amidst speculation of merger

“The meeting of all state leaders and office bearers will be conducted by state chief Jayant Patil. We have not been informed about the agenda of the meeting, but have been told to attend the meeting on time,” an office-bearer of the state NCP (SP) said.

The forthcoming local body elections in the state are likely to be discussed at the meeting, he said, before admitting that Pawar’s statement is also likely to come up.

In an interview with The Indian Express, Pawar had said that there was a demand from a section of party workers to join the NCP. A decision on the matter will be taken by NCP (SP) executive president Supriya Sule, Pawar said.

Later, Sule had responded that any decision will be taken after discussing it with party leaders and office bearers.

Prashant Jagtap, the chief of the NCP (SP)’s Pune unit, said that he was not invited for the meeting as it was only for state leaders. “I am aware of the meeting, but not the agenda. It is obvious that those who have been invited for the meeting will speculate on a possible merger of the two NCPs,” he said. Jagtap added that there was pressure from a section of the party to merge with the Ajit Pawar-led NCP, Jagtap said.

NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar and his estranged nephew, NCP chief Ajit Pawar, have shared the dais on multiple occasions in the past few days. After Ajit parted ways from his uncle, took reins of the party, and joined hands with the ruling Mahayuti alliance, they contested the Lok Sabha and Assembly elections separately.