Tale of a tweet
It seems NCP chief Sharad Pawar not only holds complete control of his party but also reins in his nephew Ajit Pawar whenever he tries to cross the party line. This was on display after the Maharashtra Deputy CM tweeted a tribute to Jan Sangh leader Deendayal Upadhyaya on his birth anniversary. However, Pawar senior called his nephew and asked to delete the post immediately as the tweet did not go down well with NCP’s ideological line. Ajit Pawar had no option but to follow his uncle’s directions. When asked about it later, he said, “In politics, we have to listen to our seniors”.
All’s not well in NCP?
While Ajit Pawar returned to NCP after his short break up with the party and uncle Sharad Pawar, it seems he is yet to regain full influence. His faction has been getting the raw deal in appointments at crucial posts in the Maharashtra government. NCP state chief Jayant Patil, considered close to Sharad Pawar and Supriya Sule, seems to enjoy more power than Ajit and has major say in decisions. Recently, Mumbai NCP chief Nawab Malik wrote a recommendation letter to the NCP leader in Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation for the appointment of his brother to the Improvement Committee. However, he was not appointed on the instructions of Patil. Earlier, Malik’s daughter was denied the group leader despite Pawar’s recommendation.
Thorat defies CM’s will
Maharashtra Congress president Balasaheb Thorat has been maintaining his identity in the Uddhav Thackeray government. The state revenue minister is known for following the party’s agenda in both the cabinet and the organisation. Recently, Thorat refused to decrease government rates in certain areas to boost the real estate sector. Shiv Sena and NCP had agreed to the proposal, but Thorat refused citing loss of revenue to the exchequer. CM Thackeray’s personal assistant Milind Narvekar met Thorat twice with the same request but he did not budge saying he was putting the interest of the state first.
Why Raut met Fadnavis
The meeting between BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis and Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut has generated quite a buzz. Some media houses even declared that BJP and Shiv Sena are coming together to form the government in Maharashtra. While Fadnavis and Raut have clarified that they met at a suburban hotel in Mumbai as Raut wanted to arrange an interview with the former CM. However, it seems that the agenda of the meeting was neither political nor the interview. Turns out Raut met Fadnavis as an emissary of Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray because some state projects need the Centre’s approval.
Sudhir Suryawanshi
Our correspondent in Maharashtra suryawanshi.sudhir@gmail.com