[ad_1]
By Ritika: Will he? Will he not? A political potboiler is playing out in Maharashtra with all eyes on Nationalist Congress Party’s (NCP) leader Ajit Pawar’s next move.
From going ‘incincommunicado’ on April 8 to suddenly cancelling a Pune event on Monday, coinciding with two top BJP leaders from Maharashtra rushing to Delhi, Ajit Pawar’s moves have sparked fresh speculation if he will join hands with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). And it brings back to mind his brief dalliance with the BJP in November 2019.
Ajit Pawar’s 2019 stint with the BJP lasted merely 80 hours.
The 63-year-old Ajit Pawar is currently the Leader of Opposition in the Maharashtra Assembly. He is a four-time deputy chief minister and nephew of NCP supremo Sharad Pawar.
The fact that his name did not figure in the case involving an alleged fraud in State Cooperative (MSC) Bank had set off the initial speculation. Though he has not been named as one of the accused, Ajit Pawar told reporters that this did not mean he had been given a ‘clean chit’.
Ajit Pawar has kept an air of mystery alive. His sudden and unexplained disappearances have always been national headlines.
Ajit Pawar is known to be a tough administrator and an immensely popular face in his largely rural Assembly segment Baramti in Pune district. He is also a maverick leader who doesn’t shy from being on a different page from his party, NCP sources claimed.
Ajit Pawar took the plunge into electoral politics by contesting a by-election in 1991 from the Baramati Assembly seat and has since retained the family bastion seven times in a row.
AJIT PAWAR’s SHORT-LIVED TIE-UP WITH BJP IN 2019
Who can forget the Maharashtra fiasco of 2019, one of the most dramatic incidents in state politics. In November 2019, when NCP supremo Sharad Pawar was trying to forge an alliance of the Shiv Sena, NCP and Congress to form the government in Maharashtra, Ajit Pawar rebelled against the NCP chief, took a clutch of MLAs to Raj Bhavan early in the morning, and in a hastily organised ceremony, took oath as deputy chief minister. Devendra Fadnavis took oath as chief minister.
Ajit Pawar’s overnight switch was key to the BJP’s surprise comeback. The BJP and Shiv Sena, then under Uddhav Thackeray, won a majority but couldn’t form the government due to differences of opinion. The BJP and Shiv Sena then parted ways.
Ajit Pawar, while joining hands with the BJP in 2019, claimed the support of around 54 NCP MLAs, but they returned to the party fold and Ajit Pawar was isolated within his own party.
Fadnavis resigned even before a floor test in the Legislative Assembly. Ajit Pawar also tendered his resignation after Sharad Pawar completely cornered him and the BJP failed in the numbers game.
ALSO READ | Deputy CM for fourth time: The return of Ajit Pawar
HOW SHARAD PAWAR FOILED NEPHEW’S MOVES
Sharad Pawar flexed his muscles and ensured that the majority of NCP MLAs stayed with him. The NCP claimed that Ajit Pawar had gone rogue and did not have the backing of the party as far as supporting the BJP was concerned.
There were reports that NCP leaders, including Sharad Pawar, desperately persuaded him to quit the BJP alliance and return to the NCP fold. Ajit Pawar’s cousin Supriya Sule and nephew Rohit Pawar also made emotional appeals, reminding ‘Ajit-Dada’ that Sharad Pawar had stood by their family in tough times.
The Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), comprising the NCP, Congress and Shiv Sena, formed the government in Maharshtra and Uddhav Thackeray’s dream of becoming the chief minister turned into a reality.
Did the failed Ajit Pawar rebellion of 2019 have Sharad Pawar’s blessings? BJP leaders insisted that they went ahead with the plan because Sharad Pawar had agreed to a BJP-NCP alliance, according to media reports.
Even Maharashtra Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis recently claimed that Sharad Pawar was in the know in advance about his nephew Ajit Pawar‘s short-lived defection to the BJP’s side in November 2019.
After the Shiv Sena (undivided) joined hands with NCP and Congress to form the MVA government, Ajit Pawar again took oath as deputy chief minister, the second time in a month, and handled the finance portfolio thereafter.
DECODING AJIT PAWAR’s RECENT MOVES
The state politics was abuzz on Monday with reports and rumours that Ajit Pawar was inching closer to the BJP — and that he had cancelled the day’s engagements in Pune. Reports also surfaced that he had called a meeting of MLAs on Tuesday. However, he dismissed the reports as false and said he had no scheduled events to attend on Monday, reported news agency PTI.
“I was present at MGM Hospital in Kharagar, Navi Mumbai, on Monday to offer condolences to the families of the deceased and to provide comfort to those affected by heat during the ‘Maharashtra Bhushan’ Award ceremony on Sunday. I had no scheduled events (to attend) on Monday as I am still in Mumbai,” the opposition leader said in a statement.
ALSO READ | Will welcome Ajit Pawar if he’s willing to join us: Minister Uday Samant
Speculation about Ajit Pawar’s next political move started swirling last week when he suddenly cancelled his scheduled meetings. He also made comments that were seen as being soft on the BJP and Chief Minister Eknath Shinde’s camp.
The rumours come before the Supreme Court is set to pronounce its judgment on the plea regarding the disqualification of 16 legislators who raised a banner of revolt to bring down the Uddhav Thackeray-led MVA government. The rebellion was led by Eknath Shinde, who later joined hands with the BJP and formed the government.
Social activist Anjali Damania’s tweet has also added fuel to the fire. She claimed on Wednesday that Ajit Pawar could forge an alliance with the BJP.
“Today I went to Mantralaya (state headquarters) for some work. A man stopped by and told me a funny story. According to him, 15 MLAs will be disqualified (by the Supreme Court) and Ajit Pawar will go with BJP and (that) too pretty soon,” she said in a tweet and added, “Let’s see, how much more miserable the politics of Maharashtra is going to become.”
When asked about the post, Pawar mocked her and said, “What can a small party worker like me comment on something said by such an eminent personality?”
Ajit Pawar lauding Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership and expressing full faith in the Electronic Voter Machines (EVMs) used during elections also raised eyebrows in political circles.
“What’s wrong with Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs)? I personally have full faith in them. When people lose elections, they blame EVMs instead of accepting the people’s verdict,” he said.
He also credited PM Modi’s charisma for the BJP’s victory in 2014 and said inflation and jobs for youth were more important issues in the country than the PM’s academic degree.
“He (Modi) has been representing the country for nine years. I have observed that the issue of his or some other minister’s (educational) degree is dug up. It is not an important issue, but inflation and unemployment are the key issues,” Ajit Pawar said.
ALSO READ | BJP carrying out experiment with NCP leaders: Sanjay Raut amid Ajit Pawar’s exit rumours
WHAT IS AJIT PAWAR UP TO?
When Ajit Pawar went incommunicado on April 8, he had actually taken a chartered flight to Delhi to meet Union Home Minister Amit Shah to strike the final deal, the New Indian Express reported, citing highly placed sources.
However, Ajit Pawar dubbed such speculations as baseless and denied meeting senior BJP leader Amit Shah.
Reacting to state minister Dada Bhuse’s claim that “Ajit Pawar is restless in the NCP”, he said, “I have been reading the comments of ministers Dada Bhuse, Gulabrao Patil, Uday Samant about me. I can’t understand why there is so much overpouring of love for me. We are working unitedly to strengthen the MVA.”
According to the New Indian Express report, CM Eknath Shinde was paving the way for Ajit Pawar to become his successor in alliance with the BJP. Pawar has the support of 35-40 NCP lawmakers, so, he won’t attract the anti-defection law, it said.
The BJP wants a Maratha face as CM since the community comprises 35% of the electorate, hence the attempt to draw Ajit Pawar, the report said.
Shiv Sena (UBT) once again ruled out any possibility of a split in its ally NCP. The Eknath Shinde-led Sena said if Ajit Pawar joined hands with the BJP, it would strengthen the state government.
Maharashtra Industries Minister Uday Samant on Monday said the ruling BJP-Sena alliance would be open to welcome Ajit Pawar.
ALSO READ | MSC Bank scam case: ED files chargesheet; Ajit Pawar, wife Sunetra not named | Exclusive
Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut on Sunday claimed Sharad Pawar recently told Uddhav Thackeray that his party would never join hands with the BJP, even if anyone takes an individual decision to do so.
Sanjay Raut in the Marathi publication claimed, “(Sharad) Pawar told Uddhav Thackeray during their meeting (on Tuesday) that nobody wants to switch over. But, family is being targeted. If anyone takes a personal decision to leave, it is their individual issue. But we as a party will never go with the BJP.” Any one joining the BJP will be committing political suicide.”
Though the next move of Ajit Pawar remains a mystery, the BJP has to remain very cautious to avoid the embarrassment it faced in 2019. The situation is really tough for the BJP and it cannot afford to lose Maharashtra in case the Supreme Court verdict goes against the state coalition.
Meanwhile, stoking the fires and compounding the confusion, at least two NCP MLAs have come out openly to declare that they will go “wherever Ajit Pawar goes”.
(With agency inputs)
ALSO READ | Was unwell, says Ajit Pawar; berates media for speculation over his absence on Friday
[ad_2]
