NCP tussle: Repeat of what happened to Uddhav Thackeray, says Sharad Pawar on Ajit Pawar's show of strength

Amid the factional war between Ajit Pawar faction and Sharad Pawar camp, NCP supremo Sharad Pawar on Wednesday said that whatever happened to Uddhav Thackeray in June 2022 is getting repeated with his party.  

Speaking at the Yashwantrao Chavan Centre in Mumbai, where Sharad Pawar’s faction met on Wednesday, Pawar senior asked why the BJP allied with the NCP if they thought the party is corrupt. 

“You (BJP) called the NCP corrupt. So, why have you allied with the NCP now? Whatever happened to Uddhav Thackeray has been repeated now,” the NCP founder said at the Yashwantrao Chavan Centre, where their faction has gathered for a show of hands. 

Pawar senior added that whatever happens, he won't allow any claims over party name, symbol.  

He further said that if tomorrow anyone stands up and claims to be the main party, it cannot be allowed.  

“If someone is claiming that they will take the symbol, let me be clear that we will not allow it. However, I must tell you that I have fought on many symbols. Until you are in the hearts of people, symbols don't matter. Have you seen posters and banners by people? My photo is the largest. That is because they know that they have nothing else to bank upon,” Pawar said.  

 

On Wednesday, the Ajit Pawar and Sharad Pawar factions held parallel meetings in Mumbai in a show of strength.  

As of now, 14 MLAs were present at the YB Chavan Centre in support of Sharad Pawar. Meanwhile, 29 MLAs reached the Mumbai Education Trust, where the new Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister, Ajit Pawar, met his supporters. NCP MLAs who are with party president Sharad Pawar signed affidavits to show their loyalty towards him. 

Hitting out at the new Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister, Pawar senior said: "Ajit Pawar should have spoken to me if he had any problems. If he had something on his mind he could have approached me."  

Earlier in the day, Ajit Pawar moved the Election Commission on Wednesday staking claim of the party's name and symbol after 40 MLAs and MPs filed an affidavit in his support.  

The Election Commission has registered a "dispute case", according to news agency PTI. The NCP has 53 legislators in Maharashtra. The Sharad Pawar camp has filed a caveat with the poll authority on Monday urging it to hear them first before passing any directive in connection with the factional fight.

The Election Commission is now set to adjudicate the factional dispute within the NCP, founded by 83-year-old Sharad Pawar in 1999. The Election Commission is also expected to issue a notice to Sharad Pawar to respond to Ajit Pawar's plea, as per Election Commission sources. 

The ECI, in the coming days, will likely process applications from both factions, asking the sides to exchange the respective documents they submitted before the commission. 

A similar internal split in Shiv Sena last year after now CM Eknath Shinde staged a coup in June 2022. The party was divided between the supporters of Uddhav Thackeray and Ekanth Shinde.  

Shinde's coup led to the fall of the Maha Vikas Aghadi government in Maharashtra and the dethroning of Uddhav Thackeray as the CM. Shinde was later sworn in as the Maharashtra Chief Minister with Devendra Fadnavis as his deputy. 

The two sides approached the Election Commission of India to stake claim over the party's name and symbol. 

In February this year, the ECI said the party name 'Shiv Sena' and the party symbol of bow and arrow will be retained by the Eknath Shinde faction. 

The ECI elaborated that the Eknath Shinde faction was supported by MLAs with 76 per cent of the party's winning votes in the 2019 Maharashtra Assembly polls. This was in contrast to the support for Uddhav Thakeray which amounted to just 23.5 per cent. 

Also read: 'I want to become CM': Maharashtra Deputy CM Ajit Pawar at mega show-of-strength meet against Sharad Pawar

Also read: Ajit Pawar moves Election Commission to stake claim for NCP symbol