CHENNAI: The rival factions of the NCP are putting their heads together in a bid to wrest the party name and symbol.
The Ajit Pawar faction of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), which palpably has the upper hand, has approached the Election Commission of India (ECI) staking claim to the party name and symbol.
Ajit claims he has the backing of 40 MLAs, MPs and MLCs. According to NDTV, the MLAs loyal to the Ajit Pawar faction are holed up in a hotel in Mumbai.
It may be recalled that the Ajit Pawar faction, which joined the BJP-Shiv Sena Maharashtra government last week, held a meeting in Mumbai's Bandra on Wednesday in a bid to prove their strength. As many as 32 of the 53 NCP legislators attended the meeting.
The meeting removed NCP chief Sharad Pawar from the top post of the party he founded and led for over two decades.
Meanwhile, Sharad Pawar has called for a meeting in New Delhi, which will also be attended by NCP working president and MP Supriya Sule.
Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal on Thursday dubbed the political developments in Maharashtra as a "tamasha", and said the law seems to allow it.