The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) on Monday dismissed reports of internal differences over a meeting between Union Home Minister Amit Shah and a delegation of its senior leaders in New Delhi, asserting that the party remained united under the leadership of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Sunetra Pawar.
The clarification came amid speculation over the absence of Sunetra Pawar and her sons, Parth and Jay, from the meeting with Shah on Sunday, with reports suggesting that the party president and her son, a Rajya Sabha MP, had been sidelined during the discussions.
NCP national chief spokesperson Umesh Patil termed the reports "incorrect, baseless and misleading", saying Sunetra Pawar had herself facilitated the meeting by requesting Shah to meet a delegation of senior party leaders.
According to Patil, Sunetra Pawar and Parth had met Shah earlier and discussed issues facing the party following the death of Ajit Pawar in a plane crash in January. During that meeting, she had informed the Union minister that a delegation of senior leaders would meet him and sought an appointment for them.
The delegation comprising Praful Patel, Sunil Tatkare, Dilip Walse Patil, Hassan Mushrif, Chhagan Bhujbal and Dhananjay Munde met Shah in Delhi late on Sunday.
The leaders returned to Maharashtra on Monday and held closed-door discussions at the residence of state minister Chhagan Bhujbal.
Dilip Walse Patil, who was part of the delegation, told PTI that all the leaders who met Shah had returned to the state. He said the party's core group would meet before holding discussions with Sunetra Pawar in the evening.
"Attempts are being made to give an unnecessary political twist to the meeting and create a narrative of internal differences and lack of coordination within the party. The NCP is an important constituent of the Mahayuti alliance and remains united under the leadership of Sunetra Pawar," Patil said.
The meeting with Shah comes amid a challenging period for the party following its defeat in the recent Maharashtra Legislative Council elections, where it lost the Aurangabad Graduates constituency, which it had held for 18 years.
The NCP has also been seeking the finance portfolio, which was held by Ajit Pawar until his death. The portfolio has since become a point of interest in discussions over the party's position within the Mahayuti government.
Patil said the senior leaders who met Shah were familiar with issues concerning the party, matters relating to the state's interests and decisions taken during Ajit Pawar's tenure.
Urging the media not to read political differences into formal meetings between alliance partners, he said speculation should not be presented as fact and called for verification of reports concerning the party.
(With inputs from PTI)