NCP not to merge with Congress

The Nationalist Communist Party on Tuesday dismissed with contempt a suggestion of a close associate of Sharad Pawar that the party should merge with Congress to save the country from communal forces.

"Some individuals speak out of their personal frustration. I don't think it merits any political response," party general secretary D P Tripathi said.

He was reacting to the suggestion of Ratnakar Mahajan, founder member of the 11-year-old party that the NCP should merge with the Congress.

"As far as the NCP is concerned, it will continue to maintain its independent identity. As I have already said, the NCP is there to emerge and not to merge," Tripathi said.

The NCP is sharing power with the Congress for the last 11 years in Maharashtra and six years at the Centre.

Mahajan in a letter to Pawar recalled, "Even you (Pawar) have, on several occasions, said NCP has decided to support Congress to save the country from communal forces" and there was no reason to justify existence of a separate party.

"It must be accepted that as an elder brother, the Congress has treated the NCP with honour," Mahajan, former chairman of the Maharashtra State Planning Board, had said. In Mumbai, Maharashtra NCP president Madhukar Pichad ruled out merger with the Congress saying Pawar has disapproved of Mahajan's suggestion.

Pichad told a press conference that he had spoken to Pawar, who is currently abroad, about Mahajan's letter.

"Pawar has disapproved of Mahajan's action of writing such a letter which is aimed at hurting the party, and leaking it to the media," he said.

Pichad said the party had decided not to take cognisance of the letter and hence contemplating action against Mahajan does not arise.