Pawar made MLAs sign forms: Ranjit

NAGPUR, July 7: In a statement which can have a significant bearing on the ongoing row within the Congress on the issue of party MLAs backin...

NAGPUR, July 7: In a statement which can have a significant bearing on the ongoing row within the Congress on the issue of party MLAs backing independent Arun Mehta in the Council polls, the officiating MPCC chief Ranjit Deshmukh stated here today that the proposal forms for Mehta were signed by 10 Congress MLAs on the instruction from Sharad Pawar.

Deshmukh, who was asked to resign as MPCC chief in the wake of the defeat of party nominee R D Pradhan in the just-concluded Rajya Sabha elections, told The Indian Express that signatures of the MLAs were obtained by Leader of the Opposition in the State Assembly Madhukar Pichad and later the same set was used for Arun Mehta after an informal discussion between Pawar, Pichad and him.

The Congress leadership took a serious note of the victory of Mehta, a close confidante of Pawar and the humiliating defeat of Pradhan, a protege of Sonia Gandhi, and the issue was coloured as a feud between Pawar and Sonia.

Meanwhile, some of the ten Congress MLAs, who hadbeen served show cause notices by the reached Delhi today for talks with thel leaders.

Party sources said, tomorrow the MLAs are expected to meet AICC general secretary Madhavrao Scindia, who is in charge of party affairs in the stateThe MLAs who have arrived here include Dilip Valse Patil, Ashok Dhatrak, Sahebrao Baradkar, Kushal Bopche and R R Patil.

The MLAs, who are known supporters of Pawar, had a meeting with him. tonight. Efforts are also on for selection of a new PCC president.

The names of Vilasrao Deshmukh, Prataprao Bhosale and Prithviraj Chavan are in the fore front.

MLA too faults bosses

Story continues below this ad

Congress MLA R R Patil, served a show cause notice by the party for endorsing the candidature of Independent Arun Mehta in the State Legislative Council polls, has claimed that he was asked to sign blank nomination forms by the party chiefs. 8220;I don8217;t know for whom did they the Congress bosses use it,8221; Patil told his supporters at Tasgaon, his home in Sangli.