NCP crisis: Supporters meet Ajit Pawar, back his decision to join BJP-Shiv Sena government

Ajit Pawar, who rebelled against his uncle and NCP supremo Sharad Pawar, joined the Eknath Shinde-led Maharashtra government. His faction has called a meeting at MET in Bandra.

Mumbai (Maharashtra): Supporters of newly appointed Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister (DCM) Ajit Pawar, who orchestrated a coup in the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) on Wednesday met him at his residence 'Devgiri' in south Mumbai. The supporters backed Ajit Pawar's decision to join the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena-BJP government in Maharashtra.

The supporters raised slogans in favour of 63-year-old Ajit Pawar, who is an MLA from Baramati constituency in the Pune district. After his coup along with senior leaders Praful Patel and Sunil Tatkare, the Ajit Pawar faction called a meeting of the legislators at MET in suburban Bandra on Wednesday at around 11 am.

At the same time, the Sharad Pawar-led group has also called a meeting of legislators at the Yashwantrao Chavan Centre in south Mumbai. Supriya Sule, the working president of the Sharad Pawar-led NCP, and Jayant Patil, the Maharashtra chief of the Sharad Pawar-faction, have appealed to their workers to attend the meeting in large numbers.

Ajit Pawar led the rebellion in the NCP, the party founded by Sharad Pawar and PA Sangam in 1999, after he was sworn in as Maharashtra DCM. Eight other NCP MLAs including senior leaders Chhagan Bhujbal, Dilip Walse Patil, Dhananjay Munde, and Hasan Mushrif, have backed Ajit Pawar. Ajit Pawar has claimed the support of a maximum of the 53 NCP MLAs in Maharashtra. The two factions are also engaged in poster war.