Former Maharashtra chief minister and Congress leader Prithviraj Chavan on Thursday said he does not believe that Sharad Pawar was aware of nephew Ajit Pawar’s mutiny and said that the decision to take Ajit Pawar and his coterie of MLAs in the government must have been taken in New Delhi. “We have information that Eknath Shinde might be suspended from the Assembly for his rebellion in a month, by August 10 to 11. So if Shide and his 16 MLAs are thrown out, the CM post may come to Ajit Pawar. We know that he has been promised that,” Prithviraj Chavan said while Sharad Pawar reached Delhi for the national executive party meeting.
Three days after taking oath as the deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar on Wednesday showed his cards as he outnumbered his uncle in support of MLAs. The Pawar vs Pawar battle exposed the acrimony between the uncle and the nephew as the nephew asked the uncle to retire and the uncle threatened the nephew to not use his photo.
Speculations are rife that the Shinde camp MLAs want to come back to the Uddhav camp. On Wednesday night, Shinde met his MLAs and assured them that there will be no change in the government. However, Uddhav Sena leaders claimed that some Shinde Sena leaders sent them messages seeking “forgiveness from Matoshree”. BJP said Eknath Shinde will remain the chief minister and all these rumours are misleading.
The Supreme Court in May ruled that Assembly Speaker Rahu Narwekar will decide the question of the disqualification of Shinde and his 15 MLAs. As the NCP split, the Uddhav faction moved the Supreme Court for a speedy adjudication of the disqualification pleas against Shinde and his group of MLAs. According to legal experts, Shinde’s chance to continue as the chief minister appears slim and the sudden action of the BJP to take Ajit Pawar on board proves that.
‘I also want to become CM’
After the fall of the Uddhav government, Ajit Pawar became the Leader of Opposition from deputy chief minister. A year after, he is again the deputy chief minister but his ambition is soaring high as he said on Wednesday that he now wants to be the chief minister.”I was sworn in deputy CM five times. It is a record but the vehicle stops there, doesn’t proceed further. I feel from the bottom of my heart that I should become pramukh (cm) of the state. I have some things which I want to implement and for that becoming pramukh (CM) is essential,” Ajit Pawar said.
