Senior leader of the NCP and party chief Sharad Pawar’s daughter, Supriya Sule, put out a message on WhatsApp clearing the air on the twist in the political scene in Maharashtra.
Supriya Sule’s comments came on the back of a massive twist in the state after the BJP’s Devendra Fadnavis took oath as the chief minister in the morning with deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar, whose Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) had been in talks with the Shiv Sena along with the Congress to form an alliance.
Sule also pointed to Sharad Pawar’s tweet in which the veteran leader said Ajit Pawar’s decision to support the BJP to form the Maharashtra government was his “personal decision and not that of the Nationalist Congress Party”.
“It is very clear from Mr Pawar’s tweet that there is a split in the NCP,” she said while speaking to HT.
On being asked how many are MLAs are with them, she said: “It will take some time to figure that out. These things take time.”
Her party had won 54 seats in the October 24 assembly election, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) 105 seats, the Sena 56, and the Congress at 44. Independents and smaller parties won 29 seats.
Supriya Sule also said Sharad Pawar will address a press conference at 1230pm. Sharad Pawar has also called all NCP MLA’s for meeting at 4.30pm at YB Chavan Hall.
The BJP and Sena, which fought the assembly elections in Maharashtra together, fell out over the chief minister’s position and equal distribution of portfolios, ending a three-decade-old alliance.
Governor BS Koshyari invited the BJP, Sena and NCP, respectively, but no party could prove a majority within the prescribed deadline.
President’s Rule was imposed in Maharashtra on November 12 after the governor told the Centre that no party was in a position to form the government in the state.
And on Saturday, the BJP formed a government with NCP’s Ajit Pawar.
