New Delhi: After NCP leader Ajit Pawar did the unthinkable by switching allegiance to the BJP and was sworn in as the Deputy CM on Sunday, NCP has filed a disqualification petition to the Assembly speaker Rahul Narwekar and also approached the Election Commission.
Talking exclusively to ETV Bharat, Jitender Awadh, who was appointed as the LoP in the Maharashtra Assembly, said "No individual/ faction can claim control over the party. Sharad Pawar is our supreme leader and we will legally fight this battle." On a question over Ajit Pawar's claim that he will contest the future elections on NCP's name and symbol, he said, "We moved the Election Commission yesterday night and have submitted a letter."
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Maharashtra claimed that Ajit Pawar has got the support of over 35-40 out of the NCP’s 53 MLAs in the state assembly. To circumvent the provisions of the Anti-Defection Law, Ajit Pawar needs the backing of more than 36 MLAs. This development is reminiscent of the power struggle in Maharashtra when Eknath Shinde group rebelled against the Shiv Sena, leading to the sudden fall of the MVA government followed and a split in the party.
Sharad Pawar, responding to his nephew’s defection, vowed to build new leadership within the party and pledged to take disciplinary action against those involved in the rebellion. In a dramatic revolt and subsequent switchover, Pawar deserted the NCP along with at least 30 other MLAs to join the Eknath Shinde-led Maharashtra government in which he shortly took oath as Deputy Chief Minister, a berth he would share with BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis.
Eight other NCP leaders also joined the Maharashtra government today, even as sources said that Ajit Pawar has the support of 40 out of the 53 NCP MLAs and his Sunday move effectively leaves NCP in tatters. The move has also jolted the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), the political coalition in the state of which the NCP was a major part.
