In overtures to Sharad Pawar before polls, Ajit NCP leaders rise to defend him from BJP attacks

Shah’s scathing attack on Pawar has, however, drawn sharp criticism from a section of Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar-led NCP, an ally of the ruling Mahayuti coalition which also includes the BJP and CM Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena.

In July last year, Pawar’s estranged nephew Ajit rebelled against him along with his faction of leaders and workers to split their party.

However, in the recent Lok Sabha polls, the Mahayuti was dealt a severe blow as it could win only 17 seats out of Maharashtra’s 48 as against the MVA’s 30 seats.

Among the Mahayuti partners, the BJP could manage to win only nine seats as compared to the Shinde Sena’s seven and the NCP’s one seat. In the MVA camp, the Congress won 13 seats as compared to the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT)’s nine and the NCP (SP)’s eight seats.

Shah’s attack on Pawar did not go down well with many leaders of the Ajit Pawar NCP, which has been facing the threat of exodus of party leaders and workers to the NCP (SP) in the wake of the Lok Sabha poll outcome.

When asked about Shah’s remarks on Pawar, Ajit refrained from making any comments.

However, several NCP leaders immediately came out to openly criticise Shah over his targeting of Pawar.

“It is wrong to make allegations against Sharad Pawar. It should be avoided and this is in the interest of all partners of Mahayuti alliance,” said NCP MLA from Chinchwad, Anna Bansode.

Another NCP leader and ex-legislator Vilas Lande said it was “improper” for the Union Home Minister to make such a statement against the Maratha stalwart.

“Prime Minister Narendra Modi had called Sharad Pawar `bhatakti atma’ (wandering soul) at a rally in the city during Lok Sabha elections. It had repercussions in the elections. The BJP should have learnt from its mistake. I am not against any individual and we have respect for Sharad Pawar who is 84 years old. The rival parties should not speak against him or it will have adverse impact in the forthcoming Assembly elections. The NCP workers will not like such criticism of the veteran leader,” he said, adding that he would even write to the BJP leadership to urge it to “not disrespect Sharad Pawar”.

Lande said both Pawar and Ajit are important for the party cadre as they have made “a lot of contribution to the development of Maharashtra”.

The Pune NCP’s working president Pradeep Deshmukh said, “Sharad Pawar is the senior-most political leader in the state. We might have parted ways on some issues but have respect for the veteran leader.”

Deshmukh said one could criticise the policy decisions of Pawar but the criticism of him at the personal level was “wrong”. “Sharad Pawar has been the chief minister four times. In Maharashtra, the disrespect shown to any veteran state leader irrespective of a party or organisation is not accepted. This is not our culture and people will not like it,” he said.

He also said the NCP workers have got hurt by Shah’s allegations against Pawar with whom they have worked for decades. “There was no need to make such remarks against our veteran leader.”

Another NCP leader said Pawar has never launched a personal attack on any leader. “So there was no need for BJP to do this, which had done this first in its Lok Sabha poll campaign and is now doing it ahead of the Assembly elections,” he said.

“Everyone has witnessed the impact of criticising Pawar during Lok Sabha elections. The MVA won maximum seats in the state. So the Mahayuti partners should be careful while making statements against Pawar. The voters preferred NCP(SP) in Lok Sabha elections and those with political ambitions have already started to shift their loyalties from Ajit to Pawar. It will increase with the attack on Pawar as the veteran leader gets more sympathy,” the NCP leader said.

The NCP’s Pimpri-Chinchwad unit chief Ajit Gavhane recently quit the party along with many of its functionaries and ex-corporators, to join the NCP(SP). Pawar welcomed them into his party fold at an event in Pune.

The Pimpri-Chinchwad city in the Pune region is considered to be one of Ajit’s key strongholds, whose politics he has dominated for years.

Ajit has sought to play down these defections, saying those with political ambitions switched sides as they thought they may not get their desired opportunity in the Mahayuti alliance. “This is normal ahead of elections and all political parties will face the same as the election draw nearer,” he said.

There are several NCP legislators who are said to be in touch with the Pawar camp and may join the NCP (SP) in the build-up to the Assembly polls.

By opposing Shah’s remarks against Pawar, several NCP leaders sought to send out a “reconciliatory signal” to the NCP(SP) while keeping their options open about joining its fold if their aspirations are not accommodated in the NCP in the Assembly polls.

Observers point out that the Lok Sabha poll outcome also indicated that Pawar enjoys a “remarkable public sympathy”, adding that “by taking a stand against attacks on Pawar, NCP leaders also want to neutralise any negative public perception against them on the ground”.

Meanwhile, the Pune BJP has decided to present the proof of alleged corrupt practices of Pawar in public at the ward level to “expose” him.

Hitting back at the BJP, Pune NCP (SP) chief Prashant Jagtap said the BJP was making “baseless allegations” against Pawar out of “frustration” after suffering losses in the Lok Sabha elections. “The BJP is upset, so they are behaving like this. Now, we will present proof of BJP connections with criminals,” he said, adding that the BJP was making accusations against a leader who is widely known for his contribution to the overall development of the state.