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New Delhi: Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar announced that his party the NCP would ally with the NCP(SP), led by his uncle Sharad Pawar, for the upcoming Pune civic polls. The announcement comes nearly 2 years after the two split and Ajit Pawar allied with the Bharatiya Janata Party. Now however the Pawars will contest the Pimpri-Chinchwad election together.
Speaking at an election rally, Ajit Pawar announced that the 2 parties had come together, "for the sake of the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation elections the two parties, the 'clock' and the 'tutari' (trumpet) have united. The 'parivar' (family) has come together."
Notably, the clock is the symbol of NCP and 'tutari' is that of Sharad Pawar's party NCP(SP). The symbol of the clock was granted to Ajit Pawar's party by the Election Commission, after the split in NCP, which was led by Sharad Pawar. Following the split, Pawar's party got a new name, NCP(SP) and also a new symbol, the 'tutari' (curved trumpet).
The uncle and nephew who were once part of the same party, the undivided NCP, split in 2023, after Ajit Pawar joined the BJP. HIs party is currently in alliance with the BJP and Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena and they are in power in Maharashtra. Sharad Pawar on the other hand joined forces with the Opposition alliance, both in the state and at the Centre. His party, the NCP(SP) is allied with the Congress and the Shiv Sena (UBT), led by Uddhav Thackeray.
However after the landslide victory of the Mahayuti alliance (BJP+NCP+Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena), there were demands that both factions of the NCP reunite once again. Now after the announcement of the Civic polls in Pune, this seems to be coming true.
The Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation, is considered to be one of the richest in Maharashtra, after the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation. The undivided NCP has held power in the Pune Municipal Corporation since 2017 and this coming together seems to be an attempt to keep the Opposition out of power.
Ajit Pawar appealed to the workers to put up a united fight during the civic polls. They were also warned against making any controversial remarks during campaigning. NDTV quoted him as saying, "We are the ones who work for development. We will edge out those who tried to put this municipal corporation in debt."
The coming together of the two factions of the NCP has led to mixed reaction across the political spectrum and among the parties in Maharashtra. While some have welcomed the move, other parties have dismissed it as mere symbolism. Some political leaders are also hoping that Sharad Pawar would break alliance with the Opposition and join the BJP.
BJP leader Navneet Rana said, "Ajit Pawar joined the BJP on Sharad Pawar's orders. I also said earlier that Ajit Pawar always follows Sharad Pawar's directions. It's nothing new for us that they are reuniting, as we knew that Ajit Pawar joined the NDA alliance after receiving directions from Sharad Pawar. We are happy that they are uniting. I hope Sharad Pawar will also join the NDA alliance soon."
NCP leader Zeeshan Siddiqui, who is part of the faction led by Ajit Pawar also welcomed the reunion. He said that it was good that both families are coming together. He said that this move will strengthen the party (NCP).
The move however was not taken too kindly by the Eknath Shinde faction of Shiv Sena. The party criticised the move saying that "surname politics will not work in Maharashtra now."
Shiv Sena leader Shaina NC also had similar views on the matter. She said that "People trust only in work, not in name. So surname politics will not work in Maharashtra now. She said that the parties are doing it for votes, but they will fail to make any major gains with the move.
