MUMBAI: In a setback to the Sharad Pawar-led faction of NCP, the Election Commission of India (ECI) on Friday refused to accept its argument of no split in NCP.
The ECI stated that the NCP is divided between two factions — one led by Sharad Pawar and another by Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar. The Election Commission asked both the factions to present their sides during the hearing on October 6.
Then, it will take a decision over which is the real NCP and whom the symbol of the party has to be allotted to. Meanwhile, NCP state chief Jayant Patil said they did not expect the ECI would take a different decision over their claim of no split within the party.
“We had informed the ECI that there is no split in NCP. But without hearing our side, the ECI has decided and accepted the split in NCP. We are seeking a legal opinion over the arbitrary decision of ECI. It shows that the conduct of the ECI is not in accordance with the law. That is quite surprising,” Patil said.
Ajit Pawar refused to speak over it, saying, “Let the ECI take the decision after hearing both sides.”
He said it will take the decision on the basis of reality and documents. A source close to Ajit Pawar said Sharad Pawar never called an election of party national and state units for some time.
“In fact, a lot of violation of the party constitution has been done by the Sharad Pawar faction. We will present all these facts before the ECI. We know how the party was run. We are closely seen and therefore we are confident of getting the party name and symbol,” he said.
The source said they will continue their fight. He said they have seen how the central agencies and independent institutions like ECI works partially, hence they are prepared for all kind of situations.