As the deceased Ajit Pawar’s wife takes oath as Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra, reports of reconciliation between the two Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) factions appear to be in trouble, as party founder Sharad Pawar said he was not aware of Sunetra Pawar’s swearing-in, asserting that the process of merger is likely to be discontinued in the wake of new developments.
Addressing reporters in Baramati, Pawar clarified that discussions regarding the possible merger of the Ajit Pawar-led faction and his own group had been ongoing for months, but the recent air crash that claimed Ajit Pawar’s life has created uncertainty, and he indicated that reconciliation efforts may now be stalled.
Pawar noted that senior leaders from both camps, including Ajit Pawar, Jayant Patil, and Shashikant Shinde, had been actively engaged in talks for the past four months, but the unfortunate accident has disrupted the process, and he stressed that several recent decisions being reported as party consensus were, in fact, internal matters of the Ajit Pawar-led NCP.
He highlighted that the selection of Sunetra Pawar as the legislative party leader and her proposed elevation as Deputy Chief Minister were decisions made internally by the faction, and he had no prior knowledge of these developments, emphasising that his group had not been consulted.
Responding to questions about the swearing-in ceremony, Pawar expressed surprise, stating that he came to know about it through media reports and clarified that there had been no communication between the factions regarding the event or any future political arrangements, while also distancing himself from speculations involving other party leaders, such as Praful Patel and Sunil Tatkare.
He added that the ruling faction may have felt the post should be offered to Sunetra Pawar following her husband’s demise, but no discussions had taken place with him, and he reiterated that his camp was entirely unaware of the decision.
Pawar further mentioned that the merger of the two NCP factions had been scheduled for announcement on February 12, as per Ajit Pawar’s plan, but the tragic incident has made it impossible to proceed as intended, and he acknowledged that while there had been optimism about unity, the current situation requires reassessment of how to face the political scenario.