In a massive show of strength, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader and Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Sunday kickstarted his campaign for the upcoming Assembly election from the Pawar clan bastion of Baramati in Pune district.
After suffering a humiliating drubbing in the recent Lok Sabha poll at the hands of his uncle Sharad Pawar’s rival NCP (SP), the Deputy CM projected a determination to win the battle for the Baramati Assembly segment in the upcoming Assembly poll as he highlighted various welfare schemes rolled out by the ruling Mahayuti coalition (comprising Chief Minister Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena, the BJP, and his NCP), underscoring the recently announced financial aid for women.
Exhorting the audience to disavow “false narratives” of the Opposition like the BJP’s purported attempt to change the Constitution, the NCP chief said: “Some people [alluding to the Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi] will try to set a false narrative by accusing us of trying to change the Constitution. But do not believe in such things. No one will dare to change the Constitution as long as we live.” All top NCP leaders, including Praful Patel, Chhagan Bhujbal, Sunil Tatkare and Dhananjay Munde, were present on the occasion.
‘Development only aim’
Mr. Ajit Pawar, who is also the Finance Minister in the Eknath Shinde-led Mahayuti, laid special stress on the recently launched Mazhi Ladki Bahin Yojana, which aims to provide monthly financial assistance of ₹1,500 to eligible women.
“Development and eradicating poverty are the objectives of my party, whereas my opponents only focus on spreading false narratives,” he said.
Aware that the ban on onion export had adversely affected the Mahayuti, which won just 17 of the total 48 Lok Sabha seats in the general election, the NCP chief said he had requested Union Minister Amit Shah to increase the Minimum Support Price (MSP) of sugar and appealed to the party workers to be wary of “false propaganda” concerning the import of milk powder and onions.
Mr. Ajit Pawar’s ruling NCP faction could manage to win just a single seat (Raigad) of the four Lok Sabha seats it had contested.
At a personal level, Mr. Ajit Pawar suffered a bitter defeat when his wife Sunetra Pawar (the ruling Mahayuti’s candidate) lost to her sister-in-law Supriya Sule (Mr. Sharad Pawar’s daughter) in the fiercely contested Baramati Lok Sabha seat.
Sunetra Pawar was later sent to the Upper House as a Rajya Sabha MP as a salve to the NCP chief’s wounds.
Now, he is looking to defend the Baramati Assembly segment, where he has been the legislator for a record seven consecutive terms since 1991, against his uncle’s NCP (SP) in the upcoming State Assembly poll.
Mr. Sharad Pawar commenced on a whirlwind campaign last month in the Baramati Assembly segment in a bid to supplant his nephew.
Mr. Sharad Pawar has been projecting his grand-nephew Yugendra Pawar — Mr. Ajit Pawar’s nephew who has parted ways politically with him by going over to Mr. Sharad Pawar’s side — as a possible candidate against Mr. Ajit Pawar.