NAGPUR, Oct 3: The Republican Party of India is heading for a vertical split with Lok Sabha member Prakash Ambedkar today questioning the authority of the Ramdas Athavale-R S Gavai group to remove him from the post of the chief returning officer of the organisational elections.Talking to newsmen here, Ambedkar said the Election Commission had recognised him as the chief returning officer and he could not be removed until the organisational elections were over.He further said the election schedule announced by him stood and the new RPI president would be elected at the party meeting at Nanded on October 29, as announced earlier.Ambedkar claimed that the Election Commission cannot interfere in the intra-party elections and the aggrieved party could get relief only through the civil court.The Athavale-Gavai group had replaced Ambedkar with M D Shewale of Pune as chief returning officer at a meeting of the party presidium here on Thursday. Shewale subsequently cancelled the election schedule announcedby Ambedkar.Meanwhile, RPI leader Gangadhar Gadhe announced his decision to take out a symbolic march to Nanded on October 29 to avoid a split in the party. He told newsmen here that followers of Ambedkar wanted unity in the party. Meanwhile, braving heavy showers in the afternoon, thousands of pilgrims from across the country thronged the Deekshabhoomi on Friday, on occasion of the 42nd Dhamma Chakra Pravartan day.Addressing the massive gathering, Sharad Pawar, Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, said unity is the strength of any community or party. He hoped that the Congress-RPI pact would continue in future as well. This unity would bring about revolutionary change in the country leading to equality of status for all and removal of atrocities on the backward classes, he said.Pawar said a social change was necessary in the country looking at the way backward communities continue to be oppressed by those in power. The Congress with RPI would strive hard to bring about this change, hepromised.
