The rebel camp MLAs flashed the victory sign at their meeting
Mumbai:
As the country closely watched the separate shows of strength by the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) factions led by Sharad Pawar and nephew Ajit Pawar, one visual was unmissable.
The face of the 83-year-old veteran was on the flex behind the stage at both the meetings, one called by his camp and the other by his rebel nephew.
The camp led by Ajit Pawar, which claims the support of a majority of NCP MLAs, used the Pawar senior’s photo despite the veteran’s statement forbidding them to do so.
“Those who betrayed my ideology and with whom I have ideological differences cannot use my photograph… Only the party of which I am the national president and Jayant Patil the State president can use my photograph,” the NCP patriarch had earlier said.
This afternoon, 28 MLAs of the rebel camp flashed the victory sign, in front of the party founder’s smiling photograph on the flex. At the Sharad Pawar camp’s meeting, 14 legislators turned up. The veteran was accompanied by his daughter and MP Supriya Sule.
The Ajit Pawar camp, clearly in no mood to alienate the party’s rank and file, has maintained that they have immense respect for the political veteran and he continues to be there leader. According to sources, the Ajit Pawar faction, which reaching out to MLAs, had said that while they respect the 83-year-old party founder, the “time has changed now” and they should “go with the flow”.
Mr Pawar has pushed for the disqualification of 9 party MLAs, including Ajit Pawar, who joined the Eknath Shinde government in a shocking move Sunday. The veteran’s camp has also asked the Election Commission to not entertain any request from the rebel faction, stressing that the party continues to be headed by Sharad Pawar and that there is no change in leadership.
