Reaching out to sulking Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Friday hailed him as a "very valued colleague" and said his knowledge, wisdom and experience are a "great asset" to his government.
The Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT) on Monday claimed Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar has failed to create a successor who could take his party forward.
The present strength of the electoral college is 781 as six seats are vacant in the Rajya Sabha and one in the Lok Sabha. This puts the majority mark at 391. The NDA has 425 MPs, while the opposition camp has the backing of 324.
The Maharashtra Assembly elections are set to be a defining moment for several regional heavyweights, including Sharad Pawar, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, his predecessor Uddhav Thackeray, and deputy CM Ajit Pawar. The two Pawars, Shinde, and Thackeray are engaged in a fierce battle for political dominance, with the outcome potentially deciding the fate of their respective parties. The BJP is contesting 149 seats, Shiv Sena 81 seats, and the Ajit Pawar-led NCP has fielded candidates in 59 constituencies. In the opposition alliance, the Congress has fielded 101 candidates, Shiv Sena (UBT) 95, and the NCP (SP) 86. The election is also marked by intense factional fights, with the two claimants of Shiv Sena's legacy competing in over 50 seats and the two Pawars facing each other in nearly 37 constituencies.
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.
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar had been diagnosed with dengue and advised medical guidance and rest for next few days, his party leader Praful Patel said on Sunday.
There were discussions on issues like inflation, unemployment and 'deliberate attempts' at some places to encourage communal forces, Pawar told reporters in Baramati town in Maharashtra.
Raut also said the state will never forgive Ajit Pawar for this act of his.
Two days before rebelling against uncle Sharad Pawar and joining the Maharashtra government last Sunday, Nationalist Congress Party leader Ajit Pawar approached the Election Commission on June 30 staking claim to the party name as well as symbol and subsequently also declared himself as president with the support of 40 lawmakers, sources said.
The constituency is being represented by senior BJP leader and Union minister Raosaheb Danve, who has won this seat five times on the trot.
The development assumes significance as Congress' ally Nationalist Congress Party (Sharad Pawar group) had named Jitendra Awhad as the new LoP in the assembly following a split in the party due to Ajit Pawar's rebellion last month.
A police complaint has been lodged at Barakhamba police station in Delhi, against 26 Opposition parties "for improper use of the name of INDIA and use of the said name for the undue influence and personation at elections."
The Sharad Pawar camp described the ruling as a "murder of democracy" which would be challenged in the Supreme Court.
'I not only came back, but returned after breaking two parties'
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister and Nationalist Congress Party head Ajit Pawar on Monday said discussions were underway among the Mahayuti partners to finalise a formula for the new government formation in the state.
Nationalist Congress Party ministers on Thursday boycotted the meeting of Union Cabinet in New Delhi to show their unhappiness over party leader Sharad Pawar not being given the number two position in the government.
State NCP chief Jayant Patil will have all the constitutional rights till the next legislature party leader is elected.
State BJP minister Chandrakant Patil last week said Harshvardhan Patil will regret his decision to join the Pawar-led party.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Left leaders met Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar separately on Tuesday to try and convince the veteran leader to be the joint opposition nominee for the presidential election.
Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala on Thursday said all the party rebels contesting against the official candidates of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) have been suspended for six years.
The third phase of polling will take place on May 7, 2024.
Bhujbal stridently opposed Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange's demand for Maratha quota from the Other Backward Classes (OBCs) share.
With reports surfacing of differences between Eknath Shinde and Devendra Fadnavis, Fadnavis was out seeking new allies. A disgruntled Ajit Pawar was easy to persuade.
'Where would a person living in the forest for 14 years go to find vegetarian food? Is it correct or not (question to the public)? Tell me when I am telling the truth'
'Ajit Pawar and some other people felt it was better to be supporting the BJP and have a coalition with the BJP than support the Congress.' 'But Sharad Pawar did not want to be a party to this kind of an opportunistic alliance.'
Pawar's recent comment which was inferred as defence of Modi was welcomed by the BJP and party president Amit Shah had thanked Pawar for the same.
Senior Congress leader and Maharashtra assembly poll candidate Balasaheb Thorat has asserted that the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) will win a clear majority and also indicated his chief ministerial aspirations. Thorat, who is among the senior leaders in the MVA after NCP (SP) head Sharad Pawar, said he enjoys cordial relations with leaders of the alliance. He also criticized the ruling Mahayuti coalition, accusing it of corruption and communal politics.
Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar said on Wednesday that the Bharatiya Janata Party's attempt to form a government with his nephew and Nationalist Congress Party leader Ajit Pawar had one benefit, as it ended President's rule in Maharashtra in 2019.
All the current political upheavals in Maharashtra are with the 2024 elections in mind and there is a degree of white-knuckle tension in all parties.
Sharad Pawar expressed surprise over the PM taking a "different stand" now.
Taking potshots at his cousins and family members who are currently opposing him and siding with Sharad Pawar, the deputy CM said in none of his elections his cousins campaigned for him.
Three years after he teamed up with Nationalist Congress Party leader Ajit Pawar in an overnight coup to form the government in Maharashtra, Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Monday said the exercise had NCP chief Sharad Pawar's backing.
Now, the state has an unprecedented situation where there are six major political players with three on each side.
He also said the topic of Sharad Pawar's resignation as NCP chief and its withdrawal is over and the matter need not be discussed.
Rohit Pawar further claimed "four-five" leaders around Ajit Pawar were trying to project the latter as the "villain" and putting all the blame for the party's split on him.
Raut said industrialists should be supported, but not corruption.
Sharad Pawar has termed as "highly irresponsible" a Shiv Sena leader Manihar Joshi's remark that the Nationalist Congress Party leader has the political acumen to unify National Democratic Alliance and lead it to power in the 2014 general elections.
In an interview to NDTV, Pawar came out in support of the Adani Group and criticised the narrative around Hindenburg Research's report on the conglomerate.
Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar might have appointed Praful Patel as working president along with his (Pawar's) daughter Supriya Sule to blunt probable allegations of "dynastic politics", the Shiv Sena (UBT) said on Monday.
'The people preferred Uddhav Thackeray and Sharad Pawar...'
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