Mumbai, July 17 2024 : The Ajit Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) has been hit hard by the resignation of four top leaders from the Pimpri-Chinchwad region, following a poor performance in the recent Lok Sabha elections in Maharashtra. These leaders are set to join the faction led by veteran politician Sharad Pawar.
The resignations come on the heels of criticism in the RSS-linked magazine Organiser, which attributed the Maharashtra BJP’s electoral struggles to its alliance with Ajit Pawar’s NCP and a lack of communication between the party, its workers, and the NDA government in the state.
Ajit Gavahane, president of the Pimpri-Chinchwad unit, student leader Yash Sane, and former corporators Rahul Bhosale and Pankaj Bhalekar are the key figures who have exited Ajit Pawar’s party. “I resigned yesterday and today we will have a meeting with all ex-corporators of another Vidhan Sabha constituency. We will accordingly decide our upcoming strategy. We are going to take blessings of Pawar Sahab (Sharad Pawar). We will make a decision together,” Gavahane told news agency ANI.
Gavahane also criticized the BJP, alleging that development in the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) has stalled since 2017.
Speculation is rife that other leaders in Ajit Pawar’s camp might also return to Sharad Pawar’s faction ahead of the Maharashtra assembly polls. Sharad Pawar, in June, had stated that while the doors were closed to those who sought to weaken his party, leaders who could strengthen the organization without tarnishing its image would be welcomed.
Ajit Pawar’s faction contested four Lok Sabha seats in Maharashtra but managed to win only one – Raigad. In contrast, Sharad Pawar’s faction secured eight seats. The assembly polls in Maharashtra are scheduled for later this year.
The Pawar family split into two political factions following Ajit Pawar’s rebellion against NCP founder Sharad Pawar in 2023. While Sharad Pawar chose to stay in the opposition, Ajit Pawar aligned himself with the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) under Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, taking the position of Deputy Chief Minister.
In the recent Lok Sabha elections, the ruling coalition Mahayuti, which includes the BJP, Shiv Sena led by Eknath Shinde, and Ajit Pawar’s NCP, won 17 out of the 48 seats in Maharashtra. Meanwhile, the opposition coalition Maha Vikas Aghadi, comprising the Congress, Shiv Sena (UBT) led by Uddhav Thackeray, and Sharad Pawar’s NCP faction, secured 30 seats.
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