Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar’s meeting with NCP chief Sharad Pawar in Pune, followed immediately by another meeting with Amit Shah in Delhi on Friday, has set tongues wagging in political circles.
Ajit Pawar met NCP chief Sharad Pawat at the Pune house of Prataprao Pawar, Sharad Pawar's brother and the owner of the Sakal News. The meeting between the two went on for more than an hour.
However, the Pawar family treated this meeting between two as a family affair. The meeting took place despite doctor's advice to Ajit Pawar against traveling as he was recently diagnosed with dengue. He ignored the advice and met Sharad Pawar and rushed to Delhi to meet Amit Shah.
This is the second meeting between the uncle and nephew after they split four months ago. This is despite the fact that Ajit Pawar has staked a claim over the name and symbol of Nationalist Congress Party, founded by his uncle Sharad Pawar. On this party, the 83-year-old Sharad Pawar has claimed in front of the Election Commission that the party belongs to him and that Ajit Pawar led factions have submitted over 20,000 fraudulent affidavits to stake claim over the party.
Sources said that Ajit Pawar is not feeling comfortable with the current three party alliance ruling Maharashtra as he feels that he does not have the same space he was given in the previous Maha Vikas Aghadi.
“Ajit Pawar was given a free hand in the Uddhav Thackeray led government in Maharashtra, but incumbent chief minister Eknath Shinde has cut the wings of Ajit Pawar and asked him not to take the meetings of any but the ministries allotted to his party. Besides, Ajit Pawar is the finance minister, but the files of each department do not go to the finance minister, but to the chief minister directly. CM Eknath Shinde has asked Ajit Pawar to submit the files through another DCM Devendra Fadnavis. Therefore, Ajit Pawar is feeling uncomfortable with this arrangement,” sources said, adding that the younger Pawar is likely to raise this with union minister Amit Shah in Delhi.
Earlier in the day, Dilip Walse Patil -- part of the Ajit Pawar faction and a minister in the state government -- also met Sharad Pawar at his residence.