MUMBAI: NCP (SP) MLA Rohit Pawar on Wednesday alleged that NCP leaders Praful Patel and Sunil Tatkare wrote to the ECI falsely claiming changes to the party constitution as part of a "premeditated plan" to vest sweeping powers in its working president Patel.
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Sunetra Pawar subsequently wrote to the Election Commission of India (ECI) asking it to disregard any such correspondence during the transition period (of her taking charge as NCP president) after her husband Ajit Pawar's demise, he said at a press conference here.
Ajit Pawar, the then deputy CM and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) head, died in a plane crash near Baramati airstrip in Pune district on January 28. Four days after his death, Sunetra Pawar was sworn in as the deputy CM and was elected the new national president of the NCP on February 26.
"Within just 18 days of Ajit Pawar's death, Praful Patel, Sunil Tatkare (both NCP MPs) and Brijmohan Srivastava wrote to the ECI on February 16 claiming -falsely- that the party constitution had been amended and sought that all powers be handed to the working president, who was Praful Patel," Rohit Pawar alleged.
"Neither Sunetra Pawar nor (her elder son) Parth Pawar was taken into confidence. After becoming national president, Sunetra Pawar appeared to have learnt of this and wrote to the ECI requesting that any correspondence between January 28 and her assuming charge should not be considered," he claimed.
The MLA cited documents dated March 10 and February 26, purportedly submitted to the ECI with signatures of Patel and Tatkare, which, he alleged, stated that in the absence of a national president, all authority would vest in the national working president and all decisions would be taken by him.
"The letter effectively concentrated all powers with the working president," he claimed, adding that Sunetra Pawar later wrote to the ECI saying that any such interim correspondence should be ignored until she formally took over as national president.
Terming as "suspicious" the statements by Union minister Piyush Goyal, first asserting that Praful Patel had become party president and later saying it was based on incorrect information, Rohit Pawar alleged there had been a "premeditated plan" among certain leaders to wrest control of the NCP.
Some BJP leaders, along with Patel and Tatkare, also exerted pressure to stall a proposed press conference by Ajit Pawar's younger son Jay Pawar, he charged.
He also claimed efforts were underway to "protect" VSR Company, which operated the Learjet 45 aircraft that crashed on January 28 with Ajit Pawar and four others on board, and that the firm received Rs 80 to 90 crore (payment for its services from the government) even after the accident.
Referring to a meeting with Congress MP Rahul Gandhi, Rohit Pawar said he was advised to take his complaint in connection with Ajit Pawar's plane crash to a state where he could get justice, following which a 'zero FIR' was registered in Karnataka. Police can register a zero First Information Report when the crime has not taken place under their jurisdiction, and transfer it to the appropriate police station.
Without taking any names, Rohit Pawar also claimed that instructions were issued not to raise the issue of Ajit Pawar's accident during the legislature session, resulting in most MLAs remaining silent.
Demanding a criminal investigation, the legislator questioned whether the entire episode -- from the alleged letters to attempts to control the party -- was part of a larger conspiracy.
He also alleged there were attempts to conduct "black magic" or suspicious rituals outside Ajit Pawar's residence before his death, possibly involving a self-styled godman from Nashik.
"Was the January 28 incident truly an accident or something more sinister?" he asked, adding that discussions and inquiries were underway.