Mumbai: Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Monday said that only NCP founder Sharad Pawar and Deputy Chief Minister Sunetra Pawar could clarify whether the two factions of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) would merge. He said any merger would require the BJP’s consent, adding that neither leader had approached his party so far. His remarks come amid renewed speculation over the reunification of the rival NCP factions following recent meetings between leaders of the Sunetra Pawar-led NCP and Sharad Pawar. Meanwhile, Maharashtra NCP president Sunil Tatkare met Sunetra Pawar at her residence in Katewadi, Baramati. The two leaders held a closed-door meeting in the presence of Rajya Sabha member Parth Pawar.
There were reports of an internal rift within the Sunetra Pawar-led NCP, involving senior leaders, particularly Sunil Tatkare and Praful Patel, as well as Sunetra Pawar and her son, Rajya Sabha MP Parth Pawar. Amid these reports, a six-member delegation of NCP leaders — Dhananjay Munde, Sunil Tatkare, Praful Patel, Hasan Mushrif, Chhagan Bhujbal and Dilip Walse Patil — met Union Home Minister Amit Shah earlier last week. Sources claimed that the delegation had reportedly raised concerns over the way the party was being managed by Sunetra Pawar and her son, Parth. Against this backdrop, Praful Patel met Sharad Pawar in hospital on November 5, and it was decided that they would meet again after November 10. Apart from this, the Maharashtra NCP president, too, admitted for the first time that the merger of the two NCP factions was on the cards and could have been finalised by February 12 had Ajit Pawar been alive. However, discussions on the merger took a back seat following Ajit Pawar’s death.
According to sources, a section of NCP leaders led by Rohit Pawar believes that if the merger takes place, the reunited party should sit in the Opposition rather than join the BJP-led NDA. However, senior leaders Jayant Patil and Jitendra Awhad are believed to have conveyed to the party leadership their preference for joining the NDA and becoming part of the governments at both the Centre and in Maharashtra.
Meanwhile, Mr Tatkare told reporters on Tuesday that Sunetra Pawar would take a decision on the merger of the two NCP factions.
Mr Fadnavis, who is also a senior BJP leader, said that only Sharad Pawar and Sunetra Pawar could clarify their respective positions on the proposed merger of the two NCP factions. “Whatever the two leaders say will be the truth. Nobody else knows anything about it,” he said.
The senior BJP leader added that even if the two leaders decided to merge the factions, Sunetra Pawar would have to inform the BJP, as the merger could not take place without the BJP’s consent. However, neither of the two leaders had so far communicated anything to the BJP regarding the proposed merger.
Responding to a question, Mr Fadnavis said that comparing Deputy Chief Minister Sunetra Pawar with her late husband, Ajit Pawar, would be unfair to her. Ajit Pawar was an experienced leader with tremendous analytical abilities, while Sunetra was relatively new to politics. However, with the support of her party colleagues, she was handling her responsibilities competently, he added.
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