Stung by defections, dwindling political fortune, Sharad Pawar faces uphill task

While the seven-time MLA and seven-time MP, Pawar has himself engineered many defections in his own political career, to remain relevant the four-time chief minister must now take on Devendra Fadnavis, the second chief minister of Maharashtra to have completed his five-year term.

Sharad Pawar knows he is the glue which binds the NCP and a beating at the hustings could mean a sorry end to his illustrious career that began at the age of 27. (Source: File)

SET TO turn 79 years this December, Sharad Pawar faces the uphill task of reasserting the political standing of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) that has been plagued by the steady exit of many of his hand-picked associates over the past few months.

In the last two months, the party has lost eight of its total 41 MLAs to the BJP or the Shiv Sena, besides several senior leaders and old-time Pawar associates.

While the seven-time MLA and seven-time MP, Pawar has himself engineered many defections in his own political career, to remain relevant the four-time chief minister must now take on Devendra Fadnavis, the second chief minister of Maharashtra to have completed his five-year term — a feat that even Pawar could not manage.

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Despite NCP’s dwindling fortunes in the last few elections, there was a perception that Pawar is a force to be reckoned with. In the run-up to the recently concluded Lok Sabha elections, Pawar had travelled across the country to build alliances, in the process appearing as a rallying figure for opposition parties. Within the party too, he continues to enjoy a towering presence. In fact, his good relations with Prime Minister Narendra Modi also seemed to provide a cushion against any witch hunt that the Centre may initiate.

The equation, however, had began to change as the results of the 2019 Lok Sabha election started trickling in on May 23. With a massive mandate that the Narendra Modi-led BJP got, and the rout suffered by the NCP — it got only four seats — the saffron party has ever since systematically taken up a mission to cut Pawar further to size. Already struggling before the Lok Sabha elections, the NCP was hit by a tsunami of defections. For the BJP, targeting the NCP’s western Maharashtra citadel was a well calculated move to dismantle the Sharad Pawar era in Maharashtra politics. “The clock seems to have turned a full circle for him (Pawar). What he did to others, the same thing is happening to his party. There is no need to cry foul now. The kind of politics you played, it will resonate and echo somewhere,” Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had said.

With the party’s current woes, an expected generational change in leadership has not happened — while Pawar’s nephew, Ajit Pawar, is seen to be the party’s heir apparent, he is not seen as a unifying force. Pawar knows he is the glue which binds the NCP and a beating at the hustings could mean a sorry end to his illustrious career that began for him at the age of 27. In fact, it is to rescue his own legacy that Pawar had embarked on a statewide trip.

“The politics of Sharad Pawar is rooted in socialism and the welfare of people. This is a legacy that will never end. The only legacy that will get buried in the coming few days is the legacy of Godse, which this (the BJP-led) government follows,” NCP spokesperson Nawab Malik said.

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What Pawar, however, has managed to project is essentially his battle to stay relevant as a fight for an egalitarian society. “People ask me why am I doing this at this age. We have a challenge to ensure the harmonious development of this state and the growth of its citizens, including Dalits and minorities. It is necessary to strive for these goals and that is what I am trying to do,” Pawar had said at a rally, eliciting a thunderous applause. It, however, remains to be seen if he can manage to translate the same into votes.