Nationalist Congress Party-Sharadchandra Pawar president Sharad Pawar's remarks on Monday virtually declaring new entrant Harshavardhan Patil's candidature for the upcoming assembly polls in Maharashtra has irked a section of party leaders that was eyeing ticket from the Indapur seat.
The election campaign was one of the most vitriolic in the state, but you would not have guessed it from the smiles and selfies from the politicians.
Thackeray also condemned the collapse of a girder of an overbridge which was being constructed on a section of the Mumbai-Goa highway in Chiplun city on Monday.
A NCP source said his party is claiming Aurangabad, Pune, Yavatmal from the Congress quota since it was "better placed to win".
Thackeray also drew a comparison between the current regime and Hitler.
Two days after being sworn in as Maharashtra Chief Minister, Devendra Fadnavis on Saturday took oath as an MLA along with deputy CMs Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar, while the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi boycotted the ceremony alleging EVM misuse.
While the MNS had fielded 125 candidates, the VBA had 200 candidates in the fray.
Speculations about a rapprochement between Uddhav Thackeray and his estranged cousin Raj Thackeray are gathering steam, but leaders of the Shiv Sena (UBT) and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) acknowledge that personal ties and organisational synergy are significant hurdles that need to be overcome. While both parties have expressed a willingness to put aside "trivial issues" and unite, the prospect of a reunion is complex, involving family dynamics, ideological differences, and the potential for internal conflicts. The reunion buzz has come at a time when both parties are experiencing a political nadir, with the Sena (UBT) winning 20 seats and the MNS drawing a blank in the 2024 assembly polls. The prospect of the two cousins coming together has enthused supporters of both parties, but it might not be the case with a section of cadres and party leaders. Key concerns include seat-sharing agreements, potential conflicts in areas with strong bases for both parties, and ideological differences.
Amid opposition call for his resignation over the Beed sarpanch murder case, Maharashtra minister Dhananjay Munde on Wednesday said he is ready to quit if asked by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis or deputy CM Ajit Pawar.
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, amid reports of growing discord with Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, has issued a warning, stating, "Don't take me lightly." Shinde's remarks come amidst a series of events suggesting tensions between the two leaders, including the appointment of guardian ministers for Raigad and Nashik, the establishment of separate project monitoring cells, and Shinde's absence from several meetings convened by Fadnavis. The recent downgrading of police security for 20 Shiv Sena MLAs further fuels speculation of a growing rift. While both leaders have denied any discord, the events suggest a power struggle within the ruling alliance.
The Sharad Pawar and Ajit Pawar factions of the NCP will hold their meetings in Yashwantrao Chavan Centre in south Mumbai and Bhujbal Knowledge City in suburban Bandra, respectively.
Speaking to reporters after attending the MVA meeting at NCP chief Sharad Pawar's residence 'Silver Oak' in Mumbai, Patil said the MVA -- comprising the Shiv Sena-Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray, the NCP, and the Congress -- will work out a seat-sharing formula ahead of the Lok Sabha and the Maharashtra assembly elections, due in the second half of the next year.
The Nationalist Congress Party in Maharashtra will abstain from voting in the Legislative Assembly if a minority government headed by the Bharatiya Janata Party seeks trust vote.
The Supreme Court on Thursday directed Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar to use the 'clock' symbol in its publicity material in the upcoming Maharashtra assembly elections with a disclaimer that the matter was sub judice before it.
Ruling Shiv Sena's MLA Sanjay Gaikwad allegedly slapped an employee of a canteen at the MLA's hostel in Mumbai after complaining about being served stale food.
He did not divulge any further information on what is going to be an intricate issue and hard bargaining.
With the Congress announcing its first list of candidates amid continuing stalemate over seat sharing for Maharashtra Assembly polls, the Nationalist Congress Party leadership has gone into a huddle to decide its future course of action.
Hours after asserting that there was no split in the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar is its leader, party chief Sharad Pawar on Friday claimed that he did not make any such statement.
Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar on Monday asked the NCP faction led by his nephew Ajit Pawar how a way out can be found in the current political scenario as demanded by them when they had already cleared their stand in public.
The 10-day-old BJP-led Mahayuti alliance ministry in Maharashtra was expanded on Sunday, with 39 ministers being sworn in, taking its strength to 42. The BJP secured 19 ministerial berths, followed by 11 for the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena and 9 for Ajit Pawar's Nationalist Congress Party. Governor P C Radhakrishnan administered the oath to the new ministers at the ceremony held in Nagpur. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and deputy CMs Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar were present.
The SIT will be headed by Crime Investigation Department's (CID) Deputy Inspector General Basavraj Teli, said an order issued by the state Home department.
Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said the NCP may have its view but 19 like-minded Opposition parties are convinced that the "PM-linked Adani Group" issue is real and very serious.
The 11 convicts in the case of gang-rape of Bilkis Bano and murder of seven of her family members during the 2002 communal riots in Gujarat can approach the Maharashtra government with request for remission of their sentences.
Senior NCP leader Chhagan Bhujbal has launched a veiled attack on party president Ajit Pawar, claiming that Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis was in favor of his induction in the cabinet. Bhujbal expressed his disappointment and humiliation over his exclusion, alleging that he was treated like a "toy" by the party leadership. He also alleged that Ajit Pawar makes decisions for the NCP like Fadnavis does for the BJP and Eknath Shinde does for the Shiv Sena.
The debate between the Congress and its ally Nationalist Congress Party on seat-sharing in Maharashtra for the Lok Sabha elections has taken a new turn. The NCP has told the Congress to go ahead on its own if it was sure of winning all the 48 Lok Sabha seats in the state.
While the BJP went back to the drawing board to recraft its political and governance outreach and regained momentum by notching up surprisingly big wins in a string of assembly polls, the burst of fresh optimism in the main opposition Congress and other INDIA bloc parties fizzled out.
The Congress-Nationalist Congress Party combine was leading in 39 constituencies and Shiv Sena-Bharatiya Janata Party in 31, according to trends from 90 seats in Maharashtra. The Maharashtra Navnirman Sena was leading in seven seats while the Third Front was leading in five seats. Those leading include Industry Minister Narayan Rane (Kudal), Union Minister Sushilkumar Shinde's daughter Praniti (Solapur) and Omraje Nimbalkar (Osmanabad.
Nationalist Congress Party president Sharad Pawar has asked his party workers to be prepared for snap polls in Maharashtra considering the political situation after the recent state Assembly elections.
'Praful Patel, Dilip Walse-Patil and Chhagan Bhujbal are not the ones who will go with Ajit Pawar'
The 83-year-old former Union minister emphasised his status as an undefeated politician since he became an MLA in 1967 at the age of 27 and said, "I have my own experiences."
The Leader of Opposition in the assembly also told an interviewer that he will "100 per cent" like to be chief minister of Maharashtra.
He said the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi was studying the poll results and "technicalities" behind them.
Ten days after it came back to power, the Congress-Nationalist Congress Party alliance struggled to form a government in Maharashtra after another round of planned portfolio-sharing talks between the two parties on Sunday night failed to take place in Mumbai.
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, who heads the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), has held a meeting with Union Home Minister and senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Amit Shah in Delhi.
Hitting out at Congress leader Vijay Wadettiwar for indulging in a blame game over the MVA's defeat in the state assembly, Raut said those who don't believe in consensus and compromise have no right to be in an alliance.
The central government, in its typical sledgehammer style, has unleashed the might of its investigative agencies like the Enforcement Directorate against NCP and Shiv Sena leaders.
A suspended police sub-inspector from Beed, Maharashtra, India, has alleged that he was offered money to carry out an "encounter" of Walmik Karad, an accused in the murder case of sarpanch Santosh Deshmukh. The suspended cop, Ranjeet Kasle, claims he mentioned the names of the individuals who made the offer in a local police station diary. However, a senior police official from Beed has dismissed Kasle's claims as baseless and demanded proof. Kasle was suspended earlier while serving as a sub-inspector in the local cyber crime department. Deshmukh, the sarpanch of Massajog village, was abducted and killed last December allegedly for attempting to stop extortion targeting an energy company. Karad is among eight individuals arrested in connection with the murder and charged under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA). The state Crime Investigation Department (CID) filed a chargesheet in the case last month. Kasle's claims come amidst ongoing investigations into the custodial death of Badlapur sexual assault case accused Akshay Shinde. Kasle has demanded a central government SIT to investigate Shinde's death, believing it will reveal the truth.
'More than Eknath Shinde's wish, we want him (Shinde) to lead us in the government.'
Sharad Pawar on Wednesday said the Maharashtra government should hold a dialogue with local villagers who are opposing a refinery project in the coastal Ratnagiri district.
